Black Butterflies
by Galalithial
Summary: A rogue organization has gone beyond human bounds and have created the first anthro human-pokemon. Will their creation comeback to destroy them? Or become the valuable weapon they want from him? And what plans do the Legendaries have for him? He will have to survive with his skill, strength, and the help of his reliable group.
1. Escape, Discovery, And Possibilities

This is a rewritten first chapter, because my first was done in idiocy and ill-practice. I feel compelled to redo this because it would be better for everyone. If you already ahead in this story, then you don't need to read this chapter again, but can if you want to. This will also be written in first person, though some later chapters might not be. So, on with the fic!

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**Leo**

I ran hard, determined to escape the dreadful place from which I came. Horrible memories flashed through my vision as I nimbly dodged trees, yellow fur barely brushing brown bark.

The torture, the tests, the "special aid." All did their job, to make me far more powerful then any existing creature, but it also served the ultimate destruction of the damned hell hole that I now ran from. Though the memories brought a pain to my heart that others could never fathom, I dared not cry. The bastard's houndoom's would follow the scent of tears.

I stopped atop a small hill, overlooking the forest I had run through. Behind me, miles away, smoke curled from the destroyed laboratory. I briefly thought of the men women who would die in that blaze, also considering those among them already dead by my hands. Good riddance. I turned away from the heart-warming sight. In the opposite direction of Hell was a large city, lit by the lights of civilization. I looked to the south, my left, and let my eyes wander over the vast plains, uninhabited by all but rattata and spearow. To my right, and north, was more continuing forest, broken by roads. Above the scene, violent, black storm clouds were building, flashes of light, lightning, streaked through out the darkness.

The scene was of millions of fireflies flying in the open night air, flashing each other signals, all dancing the elegant ballet of life, unaware of their effect on the world.

I turned back to the East, to the sprawling metropolis. I had absolutely no idea what city it was, but anywhere I was going was better then where I had been. I began to run, unaware of the man that had sneaked behind me in my moment of natural appreciation, but I was determined to reach that city and no one would stop me.

**Terra**

I sighed as I fumbled with my door keys. It had been a long day at the Pokemon Center; I was tired and just wanted to sleep. I knew better though, and I rested my head against my front door, my earrings swinging slightly in my ears. Sighing again, I opened the door and immediately my face was attacked by a small, red fur-ball.

"Ember," I sighed, "Get off me, please." The little chimchar refused to budge. "Get-off me and we will do something, anything. As soon as you are off my face we will do whatever you want." There was a squeal of joy and suddenly my vision was restored. Ember, my best-friend and partner, was hopping from foot-to-foot in anticipation.

"Can we go running?" She asked. I unconsciously smiled at the marvel of technology. In the last five years, Silph Co. had produced a pokemon-human translator. The latest model was in the form of earrings, which I wore now. The actual technology was a small sapphire sphere, surrounding it were coils of gold and red iron, forming a fire spin. It was a beautiful setting.

"Of course, I said anything." I told Ember, who gave a jump and ran to get my shoes. I changed into work-out clothes, much more appropriate then a Nurse Joy outfit.

At the front door Ember climbed on my shoulder. I turned my head to look at her.

"Ready?" I asked. She nodded enthusiastically.

I opened the door to greet the cold night air. Ember ran beside me on our way through the silent city. We were surrounded by only my footsteps and distant cars. This was the only time that I felt at peace, when the wind rushing on soft skin, feet bouncing on hard concrete. We didn't stop until we reached the inner city garden. A large mile of green.

It was tradition for Ember and I to race through it until we reached the center, a quiet glade surrounded by dense vegetation, protecting a stagnant pond. Bouncing on my toes, I looked down on the elated pokemon.

"Ready, Ember?" She looked at me like I was stupid.

"I'm always ready. On your mark... get set... GO!" We took of quickly, choosing our mode of travel. I ignored the paths, cutting straight through the heart of the forest, moving between trees like a drifting wraith. Ember took to the tree tops, swinging between branches faster than any human could run, but I don't give up too easily. I sprinted hard, laughing in time with Ember's shouts of joy.

My mind didn't realize that I fell at first. I lay sprawled on the ground, confused as to where I was, not registering Ember swinging away quickly. I caught up with myself and knew that I had tripped over something. I crawled back where I had come from slowly, looking for what I had tripped on.

In the darkness I groped blindly, hands brushing against fur. I recoiled, not wanting to scare the poor pokemon I had most likely kicked. After I had pulled away yellow ears tipped with brown sprouted up. My head said pikachu. I stroked the ears, hoping to calm the pokemon. They twitched in response.

"Hey there, little guy," I said quietly, "Are you alright? I hope your not..." She froze. The creature had lifted its entire body from the forest floor. This was definitely NOT a pikachu. The very human, male face turned to me, and I screamed. It died away however when I looked into the eyes of the poor thing.

They say your eyes are windows into the soul, but if that was true then this creature's spirit was burning in Hell. The clear, crystal blue eyes reflected the moonlight, shining despite the pain in them. Their beauty reminded me of a painting an angel I had seen once. The eyes were crafted so perfectly that you knew they could never be on a human, yet here they were, literally staring me in face.

I nearly groaned in disappointment when the eyes shut, but ignored when I realized the creature had passed out. Ember came swinging out of the trees, probably responding to my scream, and gasped in surprise. My nursing instincts took over then.

"Ember, grab his legs, and help me carry him to the clearing." Ember responded quickly, to shocked to protest. We carried the unconscious form carefully, avoiding things that he could possibly hit. We made the clearing in fifteen minutes and set him down carefully.

I began to check his body for injuries, unhindered by the rags that stood for his clothes. His body was covered by thin, half-inch yellow fur. It felt soft as I ran my hands along his torso. On his right side, below the ribs, a large bruise was forming, undoubtedly from my running shoes. The creature was well muscled, lean and strong. Ignoring it I rolled him on his stomach. I gasped.

Blood was matted to his back, massed around his left shoulder blade. Under the thick scab I could see a long pink scar. It looked fresh, although there was no way it was from the same wound the blood was from, but there was no other mark to be seen. In the yellow of his back were the familiar brown stripes of the pikachu species. His zig-zag tail hung limply to one side. In short he looked like an overgrown pikachu, with a human face, hands, and clothes. I rolled him back over. In haste I accidentally dropped him against the ground.

Those beautiful eyes snapped open, though no longer filled with pain, now clouded by anger. A hand snapped from the ground, clasping me around the throat. The powerful grip only left me enough space to barely breath. I glanced around in desperation. Ember had fainted from shock. She would be no help.

"Who are you? Do you work for Silph?" I was surprised by the harshness of tone, I was surprised by the command in the voice, but I was most surprised by the clear human speech ringing through the air. I wheezed when his grip tightened threateningly.

"No," I gasped, "No, I'm Terra, Terra Meldainiel." The creature released his grip, slowly lowering his hand.

"Thank you, Ms. Meldainiel. I am Leo." With that Leo fell back, collapsing into sleep. I took a deep breath, thankful for air. I stood, reflecting on what I had seen of Leo. I slowly walked over to the pond, and stared into its surface.

I saw an annoyed, overworked, dissatisfied 18 year old girl. She was only 5' 4", making her fairly short. Her dark brown hair fell loosely from her head, framing a pretty girl's face. Her translating earrings sparkled beautifully, in stark contrast to her sweaty form. She wasn't ugly, but she wasn't beautiful by any means. Overall I was displeased with her appearance.

Sighing I turned away from my reflection. I looked down at the form of Ember, debating whether or not to return her to her pokeball. During my contemplation I had a revelation. Could I catch Leo in a pokeball? It would certainly make transporting him easier. What have I got to lose?

I unclasped a spare pokeball from my belt and turned to face Leo. I casually tossed the ball at him, closing my eyes. Getting all excited over catching a pokemon was over-rated. I jumped with surprise when the pokeball gave a soft click, signifying a catch. I walked over and picked it up. Shrugging, I clipped the ball to my belt, picked up Ember in my arms, and began a slow jog home.

Isn't it fun when life throws curve-balls into your daily routine?

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That is revised chapter one, hoped you liked it. It should have been 100% better than the original version. No more grammar and spelling errors, and no more missing punctuation. I will also redo chapter two, so be expecting that. Review!


	2. Greetings and Insults

Okay, this is the rewrite for Chapter 2. This is absolutely not necessary if you have already read past this, but you can read it if you want. It will be the same story, but better written. This will be in first person, so I apologize if it confuses readers that a few later chapters are not. They aren't bad enough to need my immediate attention... yet. So without anymore A/N filler, the rewritten Chapter 2.

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**Leo**

_I steadied myself as explosions shook the ground beneath my feet. Bullets whizzed by my ears, forcing me behind a car. I built the electricity in my finger tips. Waiting until a brief moment of clear, I popped from behind cover and fired off the thunder in a wide arc, hitting several soldiers. I checked my surroundings again. My earpiece buzzed, followed by the monotone voice that was ever-present._

_"Second house on the right, second floor." I dashed inside, keeping a charge of electricity flowing. I ignoring the first floor, I ran upstairs. I stalked quietly among the rooms, checking each was clear. The earpiece buzzed again. "All the rooms are clear, save the last down the hall. It is on your left. We read five life-forms."_

_I adjusted my course, heading straight down the hall, building a thunderbolt as I went. Before I reached the door way I stopped. I took one deep breath and pushed an arm in, firing the charge of power. I walked in after, spraying small volts out to paralyze any survivors._

_I stopped when I realized the room was empty. On the other end a table was over turned. I looked around confused. I pushed a finger into the earpiece, activating the microphone._

_"Silph, you said there were five targets. This room is empty." There was a long pause._

_"We never said anything about targets. We said very specifically, five life forms." The realization sunk in slowly for me._

_I nearly ran to the table, which I could see had a burn mark through its center. I threw it aside. Hiding behind it was a large form under a blanket. I jammed my finger into the earpiece again._

_"Innocents, Silph? You made me kill innocents?" There was no pause this time._

_"This was not meaningless violence, this kill was meant to aid you in your longer journey." I froze. They meant these people had some connection to me?_

_"Who is under that blanket, Silph?" They didn't respond at all this time. The blanket, I noticed, had another burn through it. I grabbed hold and pulled it off. There was a moment of confusion when it was airborne, then another when I saw the corpses. I collapsed to the floor when the full realization hit me, the weight of it driving me to my knees._

_"You had me kill my family..." I whispered to no one. In front of me were the corpses of my mother and four sisters. There faces were frozen in masks of fear and pain, there bodies burned from the electricity. I shuffled forward, tentatively trying to cradle the youngest. Her charred limbs crackled in protest. The earpiece buzzed._

_"It was for the best. They were a distraction to your training. We do hope you understand we are terribly sorry." The monotone proved nothing. At that moment, as the tears rolled down my face unheeded, I made a vow. In my head it was almost audible, the twisting and snapping of my sanity. I vowed to make them pay. They would get their due for their crimes, all of them._

I woke in a cold sweat, holding my hands over my eyes. I slowly brought my mind back to consciousness, shaking off the dream like a wet towel. The reality of it, however, was not so easily forgotten. I shook slightly from shock. Taking a deep breath I composed myself enough to look about the room I was in.

I was sitting in a pink, frilly bed, and around me were more articles of pink horror. The plain white walls were covered head to toe in pink picture frames, pink shelves holding pink stuffed pokemon, even a pink book shelf filled with pink bound books. The pink dresser next to the bed was covered with perfumes, ribbons, and make-up. I shuddered, and was about to stand when the door I front of me was violently kicked open.

A girl marched in holding a tray of pancakes, followed closely by a small pokemon. She looks strangely familiar,I thought, but I just can't place it. Maybe she is an actress? No, wait. Now I remember. She helped me in that forest. Wonder why?

"Good morning." She said, "Hope you slept well, you were pretty beat up when I brought you in." I frowned.

"Where am I?" I asked. She smiled warmly.

"This is my house. Your in the guest bed. So, who are you? All I know is your name is Leo, and your obviously not human." I looked away, not wanting to answer the very simple questions.

"No, I'm not human, at least not entirely. I have a history I would rather not revisit anytime soon, so don't expect one from me. Now, have you told anyone I'm here, or has anyone seen me?" Terra dumbly shook her head. "Alright, are those pancakes?" She sighed and pushed them forward.

Without waiting I grabbed a fork and started eating. My mouth exploded with flavor. The syrup was between every pancake, mixed with melted butter, and I swear there was chocolate chips in there.

"So what are you exactly? If it doesn't involve your 'history'." I continued eating while I thought.

"Well I'm half human, and half pikachu, but that's kinda obvious. Arceus, these are good pancakes!" I said between bites of delicious pancake heaven, "I was made as a war machine by Silph Co., but that isn't really me so I left them. These are fricken' delicious! They weren't to happy about that and tried to kill me. Then I ended up here. I hope you have more of these, cause I'm having an orgasm in my mouth!" I continued eating. Terra thought for a moment, opening and closing her mouth before finding the words.

"I thought you weren't going to give me a history, why are you telling me this? Won't it jeopardize your secretiveness or something?" I stopped eating. Looking down I slowly lowered the fork to the plate. I felt the air around me chill, shadows growing deeper.

"What I just told," I emphasized each word, "doesn't even scratch the surface of my history." I growled out the last word for effect. Brightening up slightly, I continued. "And I don't mind telling you because I'm going to wipe your memory of me ever being here anyway." Terra's face darkened.

"I'll leave you to eat then. Come on Ember." The little chimchar, Ember, bounced out of the room after her trainer.

I continued to eat while thinking about what to do about my keepers. The pancakes were making it hard to focus. So delicious! I really could wipe their memories, but I have no control over how much they forget. They might forget everything about themselves, or maybe just that I even tried to erase their memories. It was to left chance. The best option would be kill them, or force them into silence. I don't want to kill them, so silence is the only option. I better go before these pancakes rob me of my sanity. My taste buds are dancing!

I ran down the hall to where I could here Ember and Terra talking. I stopped just out side the door and built an electric charge in my body. When I was ready I stepped in, releasing a condensed thunderstorm around me. I smiled at Terra and Ember's shocked faces.

"Listen, I don't want to have to get rid of your memories, to risky, so we will make a deal. You will agree to say nothing, and I won't kill you violently and painfully. Do we have deal?" I continued to fire electricity in a dazzling display of power. Suddenly Terra screamed, breaking my focus.

"Would you put some damned clothes on, you sicko!" I saw the vase flying at my face. Hey, that sorta rhymed. Crap, forgot to move!

**Terra**

The mighty half-breed, done in by a ordinary flower vase. Ember was laughing her ass off.

"Shut up Ember, it's not that funny. Help me put him back up stairs, and then we're going to the pokemart." We carried him up, got dressed, and left quickly. We didn't want to be there when he woke up, especially of he was mad... and still naked. The Pokemart was about a 15 minute walk away from my home. So I used the time to organize my thoughts.

"What should we do about our mysterious, and possibly dangerous, patient?" Terra asked Ember tentatively.

"You forgot to mention well hung." Ember retorted.

"Shut up. I'm not thinking that of the man, and I'm saying man because he seems more man than pokemon, after the way he threatened me."

"So you thought of him that way BEFORE he threatened you." It wasn't a question.

"Shut up again. I live alone with a FEMALE pokemon and my imagination. I get bored. And when I get a near perfect model of the male body I... lose myself?"

"I'm your best friend, you don't need to hide anything from me."

"Really, he terrifies me. He has unbelievable power and could use it at any time."

"Just keep a vase on hand and you'll be fine." We both shared a laugh at this.

"Lets just focus on what size he is now." She said as they walked through the sliding glass doors of the pokemart.

"We already know what size he his, extra large." Ember said giggling and blushing. She was quickly thrown into a shelf of potions.

"SHUT UP!"

**Leo**

I awoke in the same bed, and in the same room. But now I had a large bump on my head and on the dresser next to me was a pair of large bags from the pokemart. When I looked inside I was happy to find clothes, and lots of them.

I pulled out a pair of loose fitting cargo pants, black with a red strip across the knees. They were a size to big, but I also found a belt in the same bag. There were several other pairs of pants, but none of them caught my eye. In the second bag were plain shirts of all different sizes and colors. I picked a good-fitting red one put it on. There was alos a pair of shoes with socks, but I ignored them, not really needing tennis shoes.

I walked out into the living room, fully clothed, and sat down across from Terra, who was watching the news without actually watching it.

"So, did you get me these clothes?" She nodded absently. "Hey, I don't mean to be rude, but... can you make some more of those pancakes?" She looked up then, a little in shock.

"What?" I cocked my head slightly and enunciated each syllable.

"CAN. YOU. MAKE. ME. PAN. CAKES?" She stared at me in disbelief, can't imagine why.

"I am not your slave! Make your own damn pancakes!" I growled and pointed at my head.

"You hit me with a vase!" She stuck her tongue out at me.

"You walked in on a conversation naked."

"That wasn't my fault, you took my clothes. Just make some pancakes before I kill you!" I shouted. I couldn't believe how angry I was getting over pancakes. Terra calmly stood and lifted me by the arm.

"I think it is time you left." She dragged me kicking and screaming to the front door, and promptly shoved me into the streets. I rolled to my feet and glared as she slammed her front door. Suddenly a woman screamed, and I looked around confused.

I was in the middle of the street, being stared at by hundreds of people, and a woman got scared and screamed. Great, now they all probably think I attacked someone. Not hesitating, I took off running through the crowd, avoiding reaching hands. The mob continued to follow me long after I was out of sight, forcing to me to keep running.

Damn you Terra!

**Terra**

I was fuming around the house, getting ready for my shift at the pokemon center. I was absolutely furious with Leo for the way he treated me after I might have saved his life. Ember watched as I paced back and forth, angrily grabbing my nurse's uniform and various clip boards and papers.

"I can't believe he would be that selfish. I saved him from who knows what. Now he has the nerve to not even thank me for the new clothes, or saving his worthless life. I should have left him where I found him. He doesn't deserve the kindness I showed him. What was I thinking? Pancakes? Is that how you would thank someone Ember? Well?" I finished my rant out of breath. I looked at Ember expectantly who was staring at me with glazed eyes. She snapped back to reality as she realized she was the center of attention again.

"I think... your going to be late for work." Ember responded, she wasn't really listening and got lucky when she noticed the clock.

"You weren't paying attention, were you?"

"I zoned out at 'can't believe' in all honesty."

"Your the best." I said sarcastically as I ran out to the pokemon center.

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There! It is finally rewritten. I will not be rewriting anymore chapters, unless there is great need, or great fan request to do so. Sorry if this is not 100% perfect, none of them are, but my proof reader has disappeared recently. For those of you who have already read past this and read it for kicks, Chapter 23 will be out soon. I promise. So, anyway, thanks for reading! Review!


	3. Enemies, what fun

Leo laid down in the dumpster doing his best not to spill his pancake breakfast. He laid perfectly still as the angry mob raged by in their pursuit of him. He sighed in relief as their footsteps faded into the distance. He pulled a rotting banana peel of his shoulder as he stepped out of the dumpster. Unfortunately his foot caught the lip of the dumpster as he was exiting his smelly coffin. He flailed his arms uselessly as he fell flat on his face. Sighing again he stood up to now brush dirt off his body.

"You've lost your edge 02234. I expected more of the only experiment to escape the institute." Leo snapped his head towards shadows of the alley where he hid, dropping into a fighting stance. He didn't recognize the voice, but anyone who used his experiment number was trouble sent directly from the place he hated. He lost his patience and fired a thundershock into the shadows. The man had no choice but enter the light.

Leo gasped. "Your another experiment from the institute." The man was mostly covered by a black trench coat and a low-brimmed hat, but Leo could see his jaw, black as the darkest night, was plastered with a disturbingly wide grin.

The half-breed bowed low. "Experiment 02235, your superior. I must say that I am pleased to meet you. Drop your fighting stance, I'm under strict orders not to harm you." Leo doesn't relax for a second. He knows that if you don't assume the ultimatum, that you will be caught by the unexpected.

He wanted some questions answered, but he knew that 02235 would likely not know anything. "Well 02235, I want to talk to YOUR superiors. Would you mind tossing your earpiece?" 02235 doesn't hesitate for a moment. He removes the earpiece and throws it to Leo. Without thinking twice, he puts it in and begins talking.

"Hello, Silph. I thought I wouldn't have to deal you anymore. What is the news?" He knew to expect the monotone voice which always spoke to the experiments.

"You are to return to base immediately. We sent experiment 02235 to escort you back. If you don't go peacefully we have... alternative methods. An extraction team will be at your location in 30 seconds. Don't run. It will be easier this way. You now have 20-"

Leo threw down the communicator and stamped it out of existence. He then turned to 02235 with rage burning in his eyes.

Giving the other anthro a large middle finger, he exclaimed, "This is what I want you to tell Silph." With that he took an immense leap and bounded up to one of the buildings nearest him and took off running. Sighing, 02235 pulled out a spare comm device and told the company.

"He ran again." Sigh.

Leo didn't slow when he didn't hear any sign of pursuit. As always, he knew better. He was headed for the boundaries of the city. If a fight was to start he didn't want innocents caught in the cross-fire. He had more than enough unnecessary blood on his hands. He sprinted silently, occasionally leaping over the gap between houses. He knew that he wouldn't avoid the humans chasing him forever with their helicopters and cars, damn technology. In the midst of his thoughts he isn't watching his feet, letting instinct guide him over the roofs. He really shouldn't have been surprised when his foot got caught in a pile of sticky roofing tar. As he flew to the ground with the momentum of his running behind him his mind made him bring up his arms in defense. He landed with a sickening crunch as his wrists were broken upon impact. He continued to the roof unheeded. His breath left him with a whoosh as his chest contacted the roof. He lay dazed for a moment letting his breath come back to him. Leo decided to fantasize for that Silph was lying and that there was no one coming for him. He could just close his eyes, and relax.

His wrists hurt like hell, but he could already feel them mending. The bone was setting itself, and muscle was reattaching. The pain slowly subsided, leaving everything below his elbows numb. Leo knew his body would take care of itself, but his arms would be next to useless for the next couple minutes. He decided to stay still until he could function normally.

The chopping of helicopter blades forced his eyes open. Rolling onto to his back, he looked behind him as a dark smudge came into view. Groaning, he forced himself to stand and continue running. The helicopter was getting closer and he was still a mile from city limits. Charging electricity into his legs, he poured on the speed trying to get beyond the buildings before he began getting shot at. Seeing the drop off symbolizing the end of his runway of buildings he took a mighty leap and landed on the soft grass of the plains outside Oakridge. Despite the soft landing, his wrists jolting slightly causing him to cringe as he got up to run again. He could see a small hill rising out of the landscape. Leo knew it was know that he had to make a stand. He climbed to the top of the hill and laid down. He instantly regretted the dark clothes given to him by Terra. They didn't exactly blend in with the sandy prairie grasses. He pressed himself to the earth as heard the helicopter come into earshot. He braced himself as through the ground he felt the landings of feet on soil, signifying the touch down of troops. He shuddered as the sensation continued for nearly a minute. There were a lot of troops to deal with.

"First squad fan out to the North. Second to the East, third to to the South, and fourth to the West." A load voice shouted into the calm. Leo assumed he was the commander, due to the, well, commanding. He knew the best way to throw off their coordination would be to scatter one of the squads and disable the commander. He could hear and feel the approach of the squad sent his direction. His timing had to be perfect. He flexed his wrists, some feeling returning. The crunch of dried grass got louder as the troops continued their search. Leo's heart skipped a beat when he heard them stop suddenly and then a single man walked ahead.

"Shut your mouths. Sergeant, come here. What is that dark spot in the grass?" Asked the first man, presumably the squad leader.

"It just looks like some dark dirt, Sir." Replied the sergeant.

"Switch to thermal just in case." Leo heard a soft click as the visors in the troops' helmets switched to thermal viewing. "Wait a sec, general what is that?"

At this point Leo was prepared, flexing his newly repaired arms. He jumped from the ground a mere four feet from the lead grunt. He didn't know how they hadn't noticed him, but he wasn't asking too many questions. He had only enough time take a quick glance at the soldiers' armor. They completely covered from head to toe in a metallic silver metal. It had defined plates on the shoulders, chest, arms, legs and stomach. In front of their eyes was a gold face mask, seemingly of the same type of material. The strange armor seemed to move with the soldiers as they jumped back from the heat signature that suddenly sprang from the ground. That was all the reaction Leo allowed them before quickly knocking the first unconscious and severely paralyzing the others. He then dropped back to the ground, confident no one had seen him. The assault had taken no more then two seconds. He lifted his head slightly to get a view of his surroundings, careful to keep his long ears low. About a hundred feet away he could see the landed helicopter with a man in the same armor, but his was all gold except for the face mask which was silver. The commanding officer was speaking into a com device in his helmet.

"Third squad come in. Are you there? Dammit, all squads change course to the South. Third squad isn't responding. The target is here." Leo didn't want the whole platoon descending upon him so he quickly snuck his way within ten feet of the gold grunt. When the soldier turned his back Leo lunged. To his great surprise, the soldier blocked the kick coming to his head, deflected it, and countered it with a punch to the stomach. Leo easily pulled the man off-balance and hit him in the head knocking him unconscious, but he was startled at the initial reaction time and strength of the human. With their leader lying on the ground unconscious, Leo climbed inside the helicopter and "borrowed" it for his escape. The other soldiers began to shout when the helicopter's blades began to spin in preparation for lift off. But without their commander they didn't know how to react. They became even more frantic as they saw Leo waving good-bye from inside the cockpit. Leo chuckled to himself as they began to shrink with altitude, their frantic circles making them look like ants. His mood instantly shadowed as he saw the gold soldier standing. Imagine his surprise when he noticed a rocket launcher mounted on his shoulder.

_Now why the hell is he awake already, and where in hell did he get that, _He thought to himself as he violently pulled the helicopter to the side, narrowly avoiding the first missile. He was not so lucky as to avoid the second though, which caught his tail. Already at over four-hundred feet, he began to spin violently. He used what he knew about piloting, which happened to be a lot, to control the helicopter away from the field of soldiers. If not for his substantial height, he would not have been able to get very far. He estimated that he would make maybe a mile before he crashed. He didn't know whether he would survive or not, but he sure as hell wouldn't know until he tried. He felt a strange calm as he sat in the glow of flashing red lights, strangely deaf to warning sirens. He saw the ground fly at him, he felt the helicopter suddenly stop, he heard the glass shatter as he flew threw it, he tasted the ground as he made contact with it, but through all this chaos he heard nothing as unconsciousness enveloped him in the gentle embrace of peace. He closed his eyes to the fire around him and barely noticed the explosion as the heli fuel tanks caught fire. He was just glad to sleep...


	4. History Lesson

O.k. to those of you who are reading my story, thank you, and damn you for not reviewing. To those of you who don't write, you have no idea how much it means to those of us who do write, and actually put real effort into it, when their readers tell them what they think. Anyway, I'm adding a new character this chapter, I have actually done something like research for this guy and have put a lot of thought into him. Not to sound like a broken record (even though I know I do) tell me what you think of her.

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_Leo ran down the halls laughing, determined not to be caught this time. _

_"I'm gonna get you." His mother called down the playfully. He kept running. He knew that if he got caught he would be put to the worst form of torture. Death by tickling. As he rounded the next corner he fell when tripped over a fold in the rug. Hot tears fell from his eyes as he felt the scratches on his knees open his body to the elements. The stinging was horrible and he couldn't help but cry out. His mother rounded the corner and nearly tripped over Leo. She knelt by him trying to comfort him and ease the crying wail he emitted. Alerted by the noise, his older sister came out in rush. She too knelt by Leo trying to comfort him. _

_"It is going to be alright Leo. It is only a little scratch. Here, I brought a band-aid." She spoke soothingly. Leo loved his sister._

_"Clara, it hurts." Leo was always complaining._

_His mother tried to reassure him. "It will go away in a second, I promise."_

_At this point Leo's father had heard Leo crying and had come into the hall to see the problem. When he found Leo on the ground crying over a little scratch he became insanely angry and began shouting. Leo began to get scared and was storing electricity in his electric pouches. Suddenly his father turned on him. The sudden smack across the face he received caused him to release his pent up electricity. More screams were heard. This time they were not Leo's over a petty scratch._

Leo shot up from where he lay. He shoved his hands in his face, trying to clear his mind of the horrible nightmare. He froze as felt for the first time the warm fire to his right and the coarse blanket draped over his legs. He was about spring into action when a soothing female voice called to him from across the room.

"Relax, boy. You know full well that if you were wanted dead then you would be dead. Though I must say that you were pretty damn close when I pulled you from that chopper." Leo slowly opened his eyes to the room were he was sleeping. He was laying in a bed against the back left wall of the room. He actually wasn't in a room. Upon inspection of the walls he found hard packed dirt. Looking around the rest of what he assumed was a cave he found a fireplace set in the wall to his right. Directly in front of him was a large bookcase, it was on the breach of over-flowing and books were already lying on the floor. In the wall farthest from him he could see a large oak door which he assumed was the exit for this cozy little hole in the ground. Directly to his right was a large writing desk, seated at this desk was, he assumed, the speaker. He could only see one perspective of her for she was shadowed by the fire. He rolled out of bed, happy to find he was still wearing his clothes, and walked around. Standing he could see more of the cave. Behind the bookcase he couldn't see the second cave which looked like a bedroom. He turned again to find his savior standing and facing him. His breath was taken away by what he saw.

"Careful walking around, you might be sore from your crash." Leo was barely getting over what he saw. Standing before him was yet another half-breed. The lady stood tall, slightly taller than Leo, she wore a tight fitting tank top and loose camo pants. She was shapely, very hour-glass figured. Smooth curves from head to toe. If he wasn't in complete surprise his mind might have wandered to less intelligent thoughts. Most striking was her golden fur and nine tails swinging behind her. She walked toward him with a smooth, obviously feminine swing to her hips. Leo was entranced by motion and glow of her fur in the firelight. He stood dumbstruck, trying to put together a coherent sentence. He worked his jaw a few times to try to get it working, she didn't seem to notice.

He coughed to clear his throat, "So may I know the name of my rescuer, or capturer?"

"I don't see how that matters considering you plan to run towards the door first chance you get. But if you must know, my name is Raina. In the old language it means 'gracious'."

"Well thank you Raina, I'm pleased to meet another of my kind. Especially one who isn't bent on destroying, capturing, or manipulating me."

She chuckled lightly, "Yes, I suppose that would be good, though I'm not of your kind." Leo stared in disbelief. "I can assure you I am pure-bred ninetails."

"And I can assure you that I don't believe you for a second. First, look at you, how can you have such obvious human traits and claim to be fully pokemon? And second, you have a perfectly clear human accent." He stared with confidence in the facts he had presented. She only smiled. Raina closed her eyes and took a step forward. Her nine tails raised as she gathered power. Leo stood in awe as a white light filled his vision and covering Raina from the inside out. Her form shifted forward and she fell to all fours. As the light receded, Leo found himself staring at a large ninetails. He jumped when Raina's voice boomed inside his mind.

"I can take what ever form I wish." She continued to change forms, all things from snakes to birds, all with gold fur or feathers and nine tails. she began to speak again as she returned to her humanoid form. "I collected you for a purpose Leo. Your life is more valuable than you know. Arceus and I have seen great purpose in your life."

Leo was taken a back by this last statement, "Arceus? As in the alpha male of pokemon? The most powerful pokemon second only to Ho-oh?" Raina nodded conformation. "How do you have contact with Arceus, Raina?"

She smiled, "I am over 400,000 years old, Leo." He gasped. He just couldn't fathom this beautiful woman standing in front of him being over thirty. She smiled at his reaction. "Yes, it is true. It is common knowledge that a ninetails can live an exceptionally long time due to the power stored in each of our nine tails. I was the original Ninetails present when the godly pokemon gathered to create this world. I have gained vast knowledge and insight. I haven't seen what you are to do specifically, but you will one day be great, whether in evil or justice I do not know. You look like someone just shot you in the chest." That was an understatement. The amount of information he had just received left him dizzy. The sudden dizzy spell stemmed from his recent injuries. He most likely would have passed out right there if not for the fear of his unconscious visions. He staggered back and fell against the wall, slumping down to be stopped by the floor. His mind was receding, trying to push Leo into unconsciousness, but instead just muffled his thinking. Everything was becoming a blur. Flashes of his mother shot before his eyes. Raina walked over and laid her hand on his shoulder, just as his mother used to do. Without thinking he latched on to her in a strong hug. She didn't pull back, she knew what he was doing.

He cried into her shoulder, "Please, I'm not ready. Don't make me go." He was wrapped in the blanket of his memory. His father was pulling him from his mothers grasp. He shouted things about training and being prepared. "I'm not ready, I'm not ready. Please don't take me away. Please. Please..." He sobbed for several minutes, lost in the past. Finally Raina pulled back. He had a mission to complete.

"Leo." No response. "Leo." Still nothing. "LEO!" His head snapped up, his eyes red and puffy. "You need to go. I need you to do something for me." Leo looked hopeful. In his childlike state he wanted to redeem himself. "You need to find Terra, the girl who rescued you before, though it was probably not necessary. She works at the pokemon center in Oakridge. You need to reach her without being discovered. She plays as big a role as you in the this lifetime." Leo stared in confusion. How could a human be important? The fuzziness was fading. He was able to focus on the present again.

"But, how am I going to avoid being seen?" Raina knew he was referring to his anthro form.

"I can make you either fully human or fully pokemon due to your mixed genes." Leo's eyes lit up with possibility. "Now this will only be temporary. You will only have maybe 6 hours. Now do you know which you want to turn into?"

He smiled as his mind formulated an effective plan. "I want to be a Pikachu. I have an easy solution."

* * *

Not very long or actiony, but I gave a lot of information. I just want to say that if Ninetails can live for thousands of years, it would make sense that they had an influential part in a pokemon history. So anyway review.


	5. Not Her Again

So anyway I am going to use an idea from another fic I read. It is by Ten Commandments. The idea is that if you have an idea for an awesome/funny/emotional character, you send it in to me in this format.

Name:

Species and Type(if a pokemon):

Personality:(I would prefer this be kinda descriptive so I would have more of a base to write from)

Traits:

So if I think your character is interesting, I will incorporate it into the story. With that I end with REMEMBER TO REVIEW!

* * *

It was a strange sensation being suddenly a foot tall, but it was fun. The new speed was a great addition. Leo's ears twitched as he contemplated his method for entering the Pokemon Center from the top of the building across the street. Several scenarios passed through his mind. Faking an injury, following a trainer, or even just barging in. Raina had warned he would have roughly six hours before he was changed back to a half-breed. It had only taken him forty-five minutes to reach the Pokemon Center, but Raina had tried to fit in as much information in "Oh, and one more thing..." format as she could. That had taken a lovely five hours, leaving him only fifteen minutes to find Terra. Raina's words passed through his mind yet again. He knew he had to find Terra, but he didn't understand why. Taking a glance around he dropped to the ground, nimbly landing on all fours. He coiled the muscles in his back legs and sprang into the middle of the road. He was doing good. He was being very covert. The truck never saw him.

Leo woke to the sounds of screaming. As is habit he checked the room. He was lying on a medical bed, covered to the stomach in sheets. He was naked. Again. He could feel a pattern forming. Directly in front of him was a shocked and terrified Nurse Joy. Next to her was equally terrified looking Chansey. To his right was a doctor's lab coat which he promptly "borrowed". Standing he turned to the Nurse Joy, smiling warmly.

"Excuse me, could you tell me where I could find Terra?" He asked politely. Nurse Joy promptly screamed and fainted while the Chansey ran out of the room. Leo sighed and lifted Nurse Joy onto the medical bed.

"So much for covert." He muttered to himself as he walked into the hall. Seeing another nurse walking towards him he took the opportunity to get some information. "Excuse me nurse, where could I find Terra?" He asked, once again very polite.

"Down the hall and to your right, she is- AAAHHHHH!" Again with the screaming. Is it really that surprising to see a six foot tall talking pikachu in a lab coat? I mean, really. Manners.

"Thanks, and by the way there is a fainted nurse in this room, you might want to see to her." He said jerking a thumb towards the room he just exited. With that he turned on his heel and started walking in the direction he was directed. He could hear a phone being dialed and rapid speech as he turned the corner. He was faced with another long hallway with doors on either side. The white walls ended in what looked like the lobby of the Pokemon Center. He assumed that was where he was as soon as the first nurse screamed. He walked along the hall checking every door for Terra. Most of the rooms were filled with resting pokemon or healing machinery. On his sixth door on the right he hit jackpot. Inside the room Terra was standing over a hurt Sandshrew, spraying a potion on to its back. She spun quickly when the Sandshrew shrieked in surprise at the sight of me. I simply grinned as she stood there dumb-struck. She glanced over my body and blushed. I couldn't figure out why unt-

"You didn't close your lab coat you pervert! So your what the other nurses have been screaming about!" She screamed hitting me in the side the head with the potion. I fell unconscious again. It is kinda pathetic how I can survive getting into a helicopter crash and not get a scratch, but one bottle to the head and I'm out cold.

Terra sighed pulling out a pokeball to capture Leo again. She could feel a pattern forming.

A nurse came rushing in just as the pokeball stopped shaking.

"What happened? I heard you yelling, and one of the other nurses said there was a strange pokemon loose." She was talking rapidly with shock and fear.

"It was just an abnormally large, aggressive, and stupid Pikachu. I caught it though so it is under control." Terra said with her most convincing smile. Nurse Joy looked doubtful, but she nodded and left the room. Terra sighed with relief.

Glancing at the Sandshrew she whispered, "Don't you say anything. It wouldn't be nice if you had to stay here longer because you said something _crazy,_ now would it?" The Sandshrew shook its head and pretended to zip its lips. Terra smiled and turned to leave. Her shift was over and she needed do make up a reasonable explanation for Ember. She pulled out the pokeball again and stared at it as she left the Pokemon Center and began her walk home. She made a mental pledge that she wasn't going to release him this time. Maybe then she could get some answers out of him.

_Leo knew he was dreaming again and dreaded what this meant. It was dark where ever he was. He could see a faint light in the distance. His body began walking towards it. He slowly began increasing his speed until he was sprinting towards the light. He needed it and he wouldn't be whole until he basking in its warm atmosphere. He burst through the light and stood awe-struck at what he saw. In front of him, floating a foot off the ground, was Terra. She was the light that he needed so badly. She was in her usual attire, baggy jeans and a green jacket. But sprouting from her back were two elegant pure white angel wings. Terra looked into Leo's eyes. It felt like she was looking into his soul. She smiled warmly a spoke in a such a smooth calm pattern he thought it couldn't be coming from her mouth._

"_I am your future Leo. Remember what you see, embrace what you have forgotten." With this she floated backwards, her wings flapping slowly and gracefully. Leo wanted to run after his light, but he couldn't move his legs. _

"_No, I don't understand. Come back. I need you!" He was terrified of losing her but he couldn't figure out why. She smiled again and Leo felt a deep calm._

"_Just wake up, wake up Leo. Wake... up..."_

"Wake up you lazy jerk! I made those pancakes you like." Leo shot up, naked again, yep definitely a pattern forming. He looked around. He was back in Terra's bedroom with an angry Terra staring down at him. He could only stare at her in awe.

She frowned and said, "I knew that pancakes would wake you up, but I lied so get dressed and meet me in the living room. And stop staring at me like that, you're giving me the creeps." With that she left Leo to his clothes. The same ones were there minus the ones that he had lost when he changed. This time he picked basic jeans and a tight-fitting yellow shirt that almost wasn't noticeable due to his fur color. He strolled out of the bedroom deep in thought about what his dream could have meant when a small, furry, warm bundle landed on his face.

"Leo! I knew you would come back! Now you just need to apologize to Terra for being an insensitive jerk and we can be friends." Ember was over-excited and chattering on as Leo walked into what he assumed to be the living room. Ember was still on his head, refusing to move. On the floor was a large rug depicting a Ho-oh flying over a rainbow. The rest of the room was basic. A simple couch facing a fairly large TV. How did she afford that working as a nurse? Terra was sitting on the coach flipping through channels distractedly when Leo walked in. She giggled at Ember, who was still refusing to leave the comfort of Leo's hair, and motioned for him to sit on the coach next to her.

"We have some talking to do." She said determinedly patting the couch cushion next to her.

* * *

And I incorporated Terra back in successfully. At least I think so. I have a few ideas and want to know what you guys think.

I'm thinking about making the rest of this story in first person. As in instead of saying 'He said' it will be 'I said'.

I'm going to most likely make a lemon scene for this story. But to avoid people complaining and to keep the rating at T it is going to be in a separate story as a one-shot. Unless, of course, you guys say otherwise.

And finally, should I write a prequel to this? You know, to explain Leo's past.

So leave your ideas and don't forget to make your original characters. Review!


	6. Teachers Are Fickle Things

Consider yourself warned. I'm starting this chapter at 1:30 in the morning (local time) on March 12, and I can't confirm great grammar, or storyline,but I feel inspired. I also have been drinking lots of Pepsi Wild Cherry, I'm just a little jittery. At the end of this chapter I will tell you when I ended it. I'm also putting in a couple of little things that I said I would at the end of the last chapter, so I hope you enjoy. R&R.

* * *

Have I ever told you that I hate Question and Answers? Terra was prattling on with questions that I had to respond to with, nearly every time, I can't answer that. Or, you don't need to know. And, also the occasional, why do you care? All in all I was just trying to stay awake while giving automatic answers. Until she posed one question.

"So who were your parents?" She asked innocently, not realizing the emotional corner she just put me in. I looked down trying to stall time. I considered giving another automatic answer, but she had already noticed his pause and pressed the question.

"Hm? Your mom? Your dad?" She looked questioningly at me, all big puppy dog eyes, leaning on the edge of her seat in anticipation. I surprised myself and caved. I don't know why but I did. Though I didn't tell her truth.

"My mother... she was beautiful in the way only a mother can be. Soft blue eyes, I was told that's where I got mine from, but I think mine are colder. She had curly brown hair. I can't really describe her features in anyway but gentle. Always smiling, never angry. Tall, thin, can't really describe more than that. She... died when I was young." I frowned. The picture I had just formed was accurate to my memory. It was one of many. Bittersweet.

"What about your dad? Didn't you have a father?" Terra was a little over-excited about getting some information out of me and hadn't realized she was leaning on her toes. I tried hard not to laugh as she fell flat on the floor. I couldn't control myself when Ember started shaking back and forth with uncontrolled mirth. Terra stood angry and pulled out a pokeball and called back Ember, still laughing. I just sat back down holding my sides. "That doesn't answer my question!" She was angry now. It only made me want to laugh more but I forced myself under control and continued.

"Well, my dad died before I was born. All I know about him was that he was a scientist for Silph. My mom said he was working on creating hybrids when she got pregnant with me. Dad took the opportunity to test his new research. He injected a pet Pikachu's DNA into my embryo, let bake for 9 months, and WHAMMO. You get me." I think it went smoothly. considering I was lying. Sorta. Terra sat quietly, nice change I might add, and contemplated what I just told her.

"What did you do after your mom died? And how old were you when she died?" She was trying to take the lead she had and expanded on it. I guess she is not that stupid.

"I wandered. Mostly avoiding everything. It is kinda fun to expose myself every once in a while to an unsuspecting person then disappear using agility or quick attack. Hey, what time is it?" I was getting bored and wanted to go find Raina. We had some things we needed to talk about.

"Um, well it is about 7:30, the sun just went down." She replied matter-o-factually, checking her watch. I smiled and stood up, heading toward Terra's front door. "Hey, where are you going? You just got back." She was more than little flustered by my sudden determination to leave. I looked back and smiled.

"I know you'll miss me Terra, but I'll be back before you wake up tomorrow morning. Just keep a door unlocked, I'd hate to have to break a window." With that I turned on my heel and walked out the door heading in the general direction of Raina's home. I truly planned on returning. I just hoped that Terra would make pancakes.

* * *

I will never get more than little bits of information from him, will I? I entered the kitchen and released Ember, who was still laughing hysterically I might add. I scowled and gave her a good thwack on the head. I love this language. Thwack. What a great word. When Ember stopped laughing I sighed and decided to just go to bed. My life is getting interesting... I don't like it.

* * *

Raina was outside the entrance to her home, a simple wood door set in a hill, it looked like a scene from Lord of the Rings. I half expected a hobbit to come out. She was tending her garden, a simple affair of basic vegetables and flowers. It was very calming. Time to ruin that.

"Hey Raina. I found Terra and she is as annoying and useless as ever. Anyway I need to ask you something." I walked toward her calmly and she turned to watch me approach. As I got nearer I noticed that her ears twitched with everyone of my foot steps. It was kind of funny to watch. Step, twitch. Step, twitch. Step step step, twitch twitch twitch. I was so focused on this I had to stop suddenly not realizing how close I had gotten to Raina. I looked up and saw a pair of laughing red eyes. Strange how I never noticed them before. I jumped back when I noticed our noses were nearly touching. She looked at me questioningly.

"Whats wrong Leo?" The innocence in her voice confused me. I stuttered out a reply.

"Uh... just a little to close for comfort." I chuckled. She giggled realizing what just happened. It was a delicate sound like a chiming bell. A chiming bell? I am really losing my tough, manly side. A sound off to our right caused her to stop abruptly, she crouched into a fighting stance. I, too, dropped down preparing for the worst and stood straight again, laughing. Out of the tall grass scampered a Rattata. Raina looked startled. Standing she swiveled her ears around, still on edge. I looked at her imploringly, waiting for an explanation. When she gave none I knew I had to get to the bottom of this. Call it intuition.

"What's wrong Raina? It was just a Rattata. Why are so jumpy?" I was confused and rightfully so. She looked in my general direction, though not directly at me as though I wasn't really there but she just had a strange feeling.

"Are you really that null to your surroundings? I thought you had figured it out, after all I didn't really hide it." She stared at me in shock. I guess it is just a woman thing. It was the same look my mother used to give me when the answer was right in front of my eyes and I was just failing to see it. I thought passed my mind. I quietly picked up a stone, careful not to make a single sound, and tossed it across the garden. When it hit the ground Raina's head snapped to the where it had landed. She looked confused when her face turned toward me again, still not looking at me, but in my direction.

"You're blind." It was a simple statement, yet it was a shuddering upset to my plans. Raina smiled realizing what I just did.

"There may be hope for you yet. Now, what did you want to ask me?" She was still wearing that self-pleased smile. In all honesty, I wanted her to teach me. I realized how much she knew, and how much it could aid me. I didn't want to ask now, she must have a hard enough life living blind, and alone.

"Never mind, just wanted to see how you were doing. I'll leave now, don't want to be a burden." I sighed, putting on a fake smile, not that she could see it. Somehow I knew that she knew that I did it, though.

"Why, Leo? You just got here. And, yes." That same knowing smile. It was getting creepy.

"Yes to what?" Just for your information, I had said nothing about learning from her... yet.

"Yes I will be your teacher. I see potential in you. For instance, I believe you could learn to be a shape shifter. First lesson, shape-shifting is an unearthly art unattainable by most creatures." I just stared as she calmly told me what I wanted to hear. It is very unsettling to think that some one is in your mind with you. She smiled again. Uh-oh. "Other unearthly arts include future foresight, and mental telepathy." I jumped when the next words came through my mind. Again it is unsettling to realize the thoughts you're hearing aren't your own. _"These are more common in psychic pokemon. Many communicate with their minds, but all the same it is unattainable by most mortals. Then again you are not most mortals." _I smiled as I recognized the obvious feminine note in the foreign thoughts.

My mind wrapped around the concept immediately. I assumed it was from Raina projecting the concept to me. _"When do we begin." _this time we shared a knowing smile.

_"You learn quickly, good." _With that she entered her home with me on her tails. My life just got a hell of a lot more interesting.

* * *

I really thought this was either going to take longer, or just be longer, but I think this is as good a place to stop as any. I finished this at 5:30 March 12, but I only worked for a total of about 6 hours. Remember to R&R. Tell me how you like the new writing perspective. 'Till next time, bye!


	7. Psychics, and Birds, and Gods Oh my!

I am still mad about the zero reviews. If I get just one, even a flame, so much thanks will go to that person that everyone will know their name. Now, onto the story, no new things, except if you see italics, assume it is telepathy unless I tell you otherwise, dreams will now be in bold. At least, I think so.

* * *

**Leo**

My brain was actually throbbing as I walked into Terra's home. I was tempted to yell for Terra, but I though better of it, remembering the last time I pissed her off. I staggered into the kitchen and stumbled around blindly for the light switch. I knocked over jars and other unidentifiable objects. Crashing and banging was evident. As I found the light switch, I cursed myself at what I found. Salt was spread across the floor with several containers smashed. There was some kind of liquid seeping under fridge, and on many cabinets was a mysterious slime. On a table in the center of the room was a large over-turned pitcher. I walked slowly to the table with my mouth hanging open. When I reached the table I picked up a small bottle and stared at the label, still slack-jawed. Smiling I left the room to go to bed, shutting the lights off and saying,

"Oh, heeeres the aspirin."

I staggered off to bed happily.

Until I woke up to screaming. I ran downstairs to find Terra frozen in her kitchen. It looked strangely familiar. Looking around I said,

"Terra? I think you were robbed."

"No shit, dumb ass!" She was screaming, "I don't understand though! They didn't sack any other room and all they took was aspirin!" I stared at her confused.

"And you called me a dumb ass." With that matter-o-fact statement I turned on his heel and said over my shoulder, "I'll be back before dinner." Waving I left Terra to clean the mess I stupidly created.

Arriving at Raina's home I found her no where in sight, but her door was open so I let myself in. I entered her living room and gasped, she was sitting cross-legged in the middle of the room. DIRECTLY in the center of the room really. She was floating about four feet off the ground. I didn't want to disturb her so I sat cross-legged, practicing the exercise she taught me yesterday. I had to project my thoughts, my feelings, and myself around me. I began sensing the structure of objects in the room. The bookcase, the doorway to the other room and directly in front of me a glowing orb of power. I stopped focusing and opened my eyes when I realized that Raina had moved.

"I'm impressed that you were so focused." She sounded honestly impressed. I looked up to see her in front of me. Curiosity took over and I had to ask,

"Why would you be impressed?" I asked.

"You've been completely still for almost three hours, two hours fifty-four minutes to be exact." She was smiling. I grinned , I can barely sit still for five seconds usually. "Today we are going to start on changing your shape. Normally this would take years of practicing to get good enough, but your special and we are going to start easy." She held out her arm and closed her eyes in focus. I gaped when it morphed before me into a large wing. I didn't doubt that if she had two, Raina could fly with them. "Now you try. The idea is basic, but the practice is difficult. Just focus on your arm and imagine it changing. Make it anything you want. A claw, a wing, a hoof, anything."

Smiling I held up my arm. Closing my eyes I built the image of my arm in my head. I tried to be as precise as possible. Every muscle and vein stood out on the skin, every strand of hair was vibrant. Then I imagined, no believed, my arm was changing. In my mind's eye I saw the skin tighten and harden. I wanted it to be simple so I didn't try to change the structure of my arm at all. Alternatively I made my skin steel. My hand had to remain flexible, but my forearm became indestructible. I heard Raina gasp and snapped open my eyes. In the moment before my focus was shattered I could see the fruits of my labor. From the elbow down my arm was shiny silver. Light glared off the metal. It truly made me understand the power I was mastering. I looked to Raina smiling, but stopped when I saw the look on her face. It was one of deep awe and confusion. I was once again clueless.

Raina snapped her head up to look him in the eye, the smile returning to her lips, "That was incredible Leo, but since this is your first time you will tire quickly if you keep trying. We are finished for today, you can go home and rest. And one more thing, _from now on we will communicate in telepathy, to increase your mental focus._" I just stood confused, I had only done one thing today.

"Raina-" She gave me a look and I realized, "_Raina, why are we stopping so soon? I need more practice._" Raina had that look again and snapped her head up when I spoke.

"_If you think you are up to it, you can practice at home, but be careful and don't over exert yourself." _With that she ushered me out of the house and pointed me towards the city. She slammed her door when she got back inside. I stared at the door still confused, but listened to her request and headed for Terra's home. I promised myself I would practice more when I was back.

* * *

**Raina**

How on earth could a mortal have that much power on the first try? Even when I became an immortal I wasn't able to do even slight transformation on the first try. What is he? It was time to speak to the gods. Sitting cross-legged in the middle of my living room I could focus on transporting my spirit to the heavens. Spiritual transportation was always a bizarre feeling. Do you know what an out-of-body experience is? Well imagine that at high speeds. Your soul is almost literally ripped from your body. The secret to transportation is that it depends on distance. In your classic out-of-body experience your spirit appears directly next to your body. But the realm of the legendaries is an indiscernible distance away. The final note you need to make on this is that your spirit takes the same amount of time to reach both locations, so that means you are going a hell of a lot faster to go farther away. Somewhere between one and two thousand miles an hour. Enough of this factual stuff. I give enough of it to Leo.

I opened my eyes to find myself at the bottom a staircase. The stairway to heaven. I had to get to the top of the staircase to reach the Hall of the Gods. During the climb I collected my thoughts, something I'm rather good at. I knew Leo was gaining power in his mental acuity rapidly. The only problem was that in one day of training he had the ability of a five year student of the gods. He had already mastered mental telepathy, though they hadn't tested distance yet, and he was well on his way to actual psychic abilities such as levitation and physical telepathy. He was growing rapidly, which was great, but transformation was far, far, far beyond what he should be able to achieve. At very best she expected him to only achieve maybe a finger if he was lucky. She looked and found herself in front of a twelve foot door. It was engraved in white gold in an intricate pattern of a budding rose bush. Instead of roses at the end of each vine though were shining rubies. The leaves were made of emeralds.

Flashy, stupid, arrogant legendaries. They weren't her favorite people.

The door opened to a blinding white light. They were showing off again. Unaffected, I walked into the large hall. Everything was a dazzling white. Along the sides of the hall and at the front were columns. On these columns sat the legendaries of every region. Every legendary you would expect, and some you wouldn't. At the front were the most powerful legendaries, Arceus, Rayquaza, Mewtwo, Mew, Dialga, Palkia, Giratina, Lugia, and Ho-oH. Along the side columns were the lower legendaries, Regigigas, Shaymin, Latios, Latias, Deoxys, Celebi, Jirachi, Raikou, Entei, Suicune, Cresselia, Darkrai, Regirock, Regice, Registeel, Articuno, Zapdos, Moltres, Kyogre, Groudon, Uxie, Mesprit, Azelf, and, finally, Heatran. So much power was massed in this room that most creatures would be intimidated. But I was on a mission and knew who to speak to. I walked directly towards Giratina, he being the god of time and future. I looked bravely into his face, knowing I could match his power, and he knew too.

"_I want to know the boys future. And don't even TRY to say you don't know what I'm talking about. With the amount of power he posses I know it can only come from the gods." _You only spoke through your mind to the gods unless you were on Earth. Their true voice could destroy your eardrums and make you go insane. _"Well? What is your reasoning? What about you Mew? You always have a plan." _She turned to the happy, pink sprite. Mew did a little flip and smiled.

"_You know his future Raina. He will save the world." _Her high pitched voice was bordering on infuriating. _"Now how do you expect him to fill that role without substantial power?"_ No, scratch that, it was definitely infuriating.

I was in a rage now, _"This much power will tear him apart! His body can't contain the power of a god. If not for the power my nine tails, I wouldn't be able to contain it." _They weren't grasping the danger they had put him in. Lugia, the god of all pokemons defensive abilities, rose from his pedestal to speak.

"_Do you assume we are stupid, Raina? He is one of a kind. He is even more powerful than I think you realize. Added to his natural power, we have conditioned him with every protective force we can afford. He can handle the power. On top of that he has a natural intellect, and we have given him an intuition on what to do with the power you are giving him." _Lugia was confident he could do as was seen in his prophecy, _"He has two years until what we expect to happen, will happen, and even with our gifts, there is no guarantee that he will be ready. The task of teaching has fallen on your shoulders."_Raina wasn't happy. She turned to Arceus. He would have the answers she hoped. He had to be the Alpha pokemon for something. He just shook his head when she caught his eye.

"_It is all up to you. If you choose to instruct Leo, he will gain unimaginable power. He will have a chance to alter history for the better. If he goes wrong in his training though, he will be destroyed. It will be unavoidable. Will you take this challenge? Raina, will you instruct Leo in the ways of the unearthly arts?"_Every legendary looked at her expectantly, Mespirit even nearly fell off his column. Raina thought long and hard about this. She had already made up her mind, but it was fun to see the legendaries sweat in expectation. Only Mew and Mewtwo sat calmly, probably able to read her mind. Looking up she stared into the eyes of each pokemon around her. She shouted her simple statement aloud to add weight to her words.

"Yes," they all jumped back in surprise, "yes I will train my son." With that she turned and left. Mew was smiling, always the mysterious one.

* * *

**Leo**

I wanted to get back to the house in style. I felt that Raina was surprised by my success with my arm and I wanted to go further. Standing atop a hill outside Oakridge city limits facing into the wind with my shirt off would have startled anyone even if I was human, but what had planned would ruin my shirt and I liked this one. As before I focused deeply with my eyes closed, except now I was focusing on an image of my torso. I willed bulges to form in my back. Those bulges sprouted from my skin with a sudden movement. In my mind's eye was a pair of fifteen foot wings from behind me. They were soft and feathery and strong. Giant yellow angel wings. I focused even harder into making them reality, solid bone, muscle, skin, and feather. I hoped it would last. With one last strong thought I opened my eyes. I tried to turn myself around to see my new wings, but I couldn't see anything. I turned several times trying to twist myself to see my wings. I was giving up. Sighing I stretched, Raina was right about focus taking a lot of energy out of you. I froze when I felt a new muscle contract in my back. I looked to my right and left, and can you guess what I saw? Fifteen feet of golden glory. I gave cheer and jumped into the air, pumping my wings at the same time. I think I easily reached ten to twenty feet in the air. I landed hard, but I didn't care. I pumped my wings several times, getting used to the muscles required to "flap" them. In pure joy I shot into the air, pumping my wings mightily. I can't even describe the sensation to you. Utter freedom. In my focus, hours had passed again and in the west the sun was setting. Beautiful light just shining over the hills was enough to take your breath away. I could see wild pokemon in the temperate grasslands, flying over-head to their homes. It made think that it really sucked that humans were destroying this world. I hate sounding like a sissy environmentalist, but god damn this was amazing. Golden rays shone on my body. The effect was intense, I assume. I don't know how this could get any better.

It couldn't, but when I reached the city, I realized what could go horribly wrong. With my powerful wings I had neglected to add the other necessities of flying. Like big lungs to catch the thin oxygen, or thick blood to hold that oxygen, or a big heart to move it around. Hell, some stronger chest muscles to pull those big wings back would have been nice to. After only a couple minutes of flight I was becoming dizzy and tired. The only thing keeping me aloft up to now was my already unnatural strength and stamina, but that only lasted so long. I thanked my recent experience in roof running as I recognized Terra's house. I could tell I wasn't going to land gracefully, partly because I had no practice, partly because I was very tired and falling fast, and partly because I had neglected stronger leg muscles along with almost everything else. I steeled himself as Terra's front window closed in quickly. I instinctively folded my wings on impact and crashed into her living room. I heard screaming, but all I could say was,

"Oops." I giggled. All I could think of was:

A)How did I remember to add instincts?

B)Why was I giggling?

C)And, why did I crash every time I flew?

These are the questions one asks himself as he passes into oblivion from a violent crash.

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Well I liked this one and I want to know if you guys liked it. Longest one so far. So review please. Anyway, the transformation idea actually comes from a couple of my favorite books, Daniel X and Maximum Ride, both by the same author, James Patterson. He is awesome, I really suggest him to anyone. Also, the legendaries scenery comes from Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan, also an awesome series. Anyway, I'm still open to OC ideas, find the format in one of the previous chapters. I know that now I'm going to sound needy, but I need reviews. PLEASE review. REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW. Ok? 'Till next time! REVIEW!


	8. Perverts and Power

Number 100! I have exactly, at this very moment(though really not cause when you read this it will have gone up by at least one, THANKS), 100 views of this story! It probably isn't that much to more successful writers, but the is a big milestone for me. Can I hear a whoop, whoop? No? Well, fuck you, then. By the way, sorry for the language, I have been in total movement for the last two days and I'm tired and irritable. So excuse me, cause my grammar might also be off. I decided to start making weekly goals for myself so I have more of an inspiration to keep writing. The soonest in the week I post I will announce my goal. It will probably have to with do you, my owe so faithful readers, so help me if you can! Now I am setting my goals low for this week. One review! That's right not one of you bastards have reviewed yet. Shame on you. Help me out on this. Just one review. Just one review a week can feed little Magoogoo in Africa. He needs your help along with all the other poor little kids in Africa. Please, review and help this poor child. (By the way, apologize to any Africans, just trying to add some humor... cause it's my story.)

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**I found myself staring into the glaring eyes of my father. I was exhausted. I knew where I was. I had just finished one of my fathers training sessions, and I had failed. My father was angry. I don't know how I knew, but I did and I had learned long ago not to question the twisted reality of dreams. My father was digging around his desk in his office. Unfortunately I knew what he was digging for. My father smiled, though his glare did not lessen. He pulled out a three-foot cattle prod and turned it on. I gulped, knowing what was coming. This was my fathers twisted way of making me more powerful. Normal people would have used regular training, or if they were lazy, rare candies to get their pokemon to a higher level. I had learned long ago that my father was not normal. Walking around the desk he brandished the cattle prod threateningly.**

"**Now, Leo, you know that I only do this for your benefit. All this electricity will make you more powerful. Just hold still, I don't like this any more than you do." He was grinning menacingly. I turned to try to run,but my legs turned to jelly and I froze with my back towards him. Then it hit me. Most people would expect that an electric type would have an immunity to electricity. Lies. Dirty, painful, dreamers' lies. Electricity hurts a lot. For any one. Except those bastard ground types. I digress, in anger I turned to my father to deliver a painful shock of my own. Once again my body froze when I was completely turned towards him. I had to force my mouth to work to force out my words.**

"**I... ha... hate... you." every word came painfully. Despite the pressure they dripped a poisonous anger that most people would assume a young boy was incapable of. He smiled again. My mind, body, and heart burned to destroy him.**

"**You know I care for you, Leo." there was sarcasm heavily laid over false care. With that he shoved the cattle prod between my eyes and I found myself-**

Shooting up in this room again. It no longer surprised me. But I was naked again. I am now going to consider this my room. It needed major renovating. First, where the hell are my pants?

Just as is always perfect, Terra decided to barge in while I was climbing out of bed. Luckily my speed allowed me to shoot back under the blanket before Terra could make an awkward situation worse. She stared at me open-mouthed. Now why the hell was she surprised you might ask? I will tell you.

"Why the hell are you naked? If that is how you sleep, fine, but put some god damn clothes on in the morning." She yelling, as always. I just looked at her. I mean, surely she did this.

"The hell are you talking about? I just now woke up. And I'm pretty sure I had clothes on when I crashed through your window, so-"

"Your paying for the window. Continue." She was being snotty, to get under my skin. God dammit. It was working.

"What? No! But anyway, why did YOU take my clothes off?" I was determined to get a straight answer. Why the hell was she giving me a stupid look? Does she think I'm stupid?! At that moment realization shines on her face.

"Ember, and yes I know your outside in the hall, why did you take Leo's clothes... and underwear?" Ember walked in looking sheepish, but hid it immediately.

"'Cause he's sexy. Have you seen his penis? Damn elephant boy." Terra and I blushed wildly, both of us trying to hide it, but only I succeeded due to my red electric sacs.

"Why the hell would you say that? What is wrong with you Ember? I knew you were a little perverted, but this?" She was more embarrassed than angry.

"Admit it, you want him but you're too scared of rejection to admit it! At least I have the guts to put my feelings out there." Ember had struck a chord in Terra.

"I am not scared of rejection, and these aren't feelings, you're experiencing pure lust. This is almost rape!" Terra was trying defend herself, and was succeeding until...

"Almost? Who said almost? It was rape as far as I can tell. If you're asleep, is that considered forced?" Terra fell back and I decided I didn't need to hear anymore. They continued arguing, but blocked them out and focused on my new wardrobe. I decided that something not connected to me wouldn't be difficult to keep up, and the clothes I was forming might even be permanent. First, underwear. For fun I decided to put something funny on them. On the back they said, "Suck my sacks" and on the front was a little pikachu, arrows pointing a this electric sacs, which were conveniently right on top of my sac. He he, twisted humor. For pants I was going simple, plain black jeans. Nothin' flashy. A solid green shirt with the word "Aeropostale" on the front. I saw people wearing these, but I'm confused as to why teenagers are obsessed with French air mail. And a black leather jacket. I was happy with it and "believed" it into existence. When I opened my eyes Terra and Ember were still fighting, completely oblivious to my wardrobe... creation. When the heard me slide out of bed, Terra slapped a hand over her eyes, and Ember turned to me expectantly, which is really creepy.

"You can open your eyes Terra, I'm decent." Ember was disappointed, and for a second Terra looked like she was to, but she hid it quickly behind a mask of relief. I am going to have to do something about these two. Suddenly Terra turned serious.

"How did you do that? And where are the wings you had last night? What the hell is going on Leo? I am keeping you in my house for god knows why, and you haven't given me one straight answer. Who the hell are you?" she was venting. It must be frustrating being ignorant. Ember still looked disappointed. Sighing, I turned towards the door.

"It's a long story. I can't tell you know, but maybe someday." With that I left. I love being the sulky mysterious type. But Ember still looked disappointed. I walked down the halls of Terra's home in a daze. I was planning out my day. What should I do? The obvious choice was to go to Raina and show her what I had accomplished. But I don't like being predictable so... actually I have nothing better to do. To Raina's!

Raina wasn't outside. This was what I expected since it was a perfectly beautiful day. Oh, wait, blind. She had no idea how nice it was outside. Wait a second, blind? She has tons of books? Many of them looked read. Wasn't she reading at her desk when I woke up that morning she saved me? Confusing, but I wasn't completely surprised. This IS Raina we are talking about after all. I still wanted to know so instead of knocking I walked straight into her home. I took one moment to look around.

Then I was slammed against the wall with a knife to my throat. I looked down with shock to find Raina snarling. After a moment she let out a loud exhale and released the pressure from my neck. I rubbed gratefully at my neck.

"Sorry Leo, but you have to learn to knock, I mean really, manners." She was walking into her bedroom and I only noticed now that she was in nothing but her usual tank top and a pair of underwear. I had to restrain myself to not follow her with my eyes as she left the room. I walked over to her desk and looked at the open book there. It was open to a chapter entitled, "Legendaries." I was still confused.

"Hey Raina," I called, "how do you read?" She popped her head out of the room, half-way putting a shirt on. If she had pushed herself out much farther this would have been an awkward situation. She only smiled, probably unaware of my discomfort.

"It is another unearthly art. It just paints a perfect picture of my surroundings. I can even see the ink on a page if I'm close enough. That's how I knew it was you really. The only down side is I have to consciously use it, so most the time I just depend on my senses." She just pulled tricks out of her ass didn't she.

"How do you do it?" I was always curious. Once again she smiled. It was so heart warming, I would have given a few things just to keep that smile.

"Remember how I told you how to project your awareness? Just focus this until you can pick out specific details of something and then try projecting that." She popped back into her room to finish getting dressed. I wasn't particularly interested in this talent so I changed the subject.

"Why did you send me away when I transformed my arm yesterday?" The rustling I wasn't aware of stopped. Isn't it weird how you don't notice things until there gone?

"I was just surprised at your success. It was startling. Most ancient pokemon have trouble with it, at least at first, but you picked it up almost immediately. Understand I was surprised." She now came out in a fire-red shirt, and tan cargo shorts. She was very attractive, but something in me kept me from being attracted to her. Maybe it was some kind of teacher/student bond.

"Well even though I know you told me not to, I practiced and I actually made these clothes." Raina gasped.

"What did you say?" She was strangely startled.

"I made these clothes, what is the big deal?" You know whats a fun word? Perplexity, and it was what I felt at that moment.

"You _created_ those clothes? You don't even know what that means. The fact that you were able to perform transformation is absolutely astonishing. If you actually _created_ something is very strange." I just gave her a blank look. I had no idea why she was getting so worked up. She face palmed. "The power of creation is a power of the gods. If your able to create anything, anything at all, it means that your power is so far beyond anything I expected." I grinned. I was actually intimidating her a little bit. This power I had accidentally used showed that I was extremely powerful. Her reaction confirmed it.

"So what does this mean? Am I going to get special training or have I graduated?" I laughed, trying to add humor to what was quickly becoming a serious situation. She turned towards the door.

"Come. I want to see what you can do." She said as she opened the door. I followed her outside and continued to follow her past the garden into the wild grasses. We kept walking. I frequently asked her where we were going, but her response was always the same.

"You'll see." I was getting anxious by time we stopped after two solid hours of walking. I found myself at the edge of an immense dried lake. Damn my curiosity.

"What are we here for?" I asked, this seemed to shape up to be a pointless venture.

"We're here to gauge your power. Initially I planned to give you basic training, but this turn of events requires me to take different measures. Depending on your success here, your training will change. Now, fill the lake." She said calmly. My jaw dropped. How was I supposed to fill a whole dry lake? Better not ask questions. I turned toward the lake and examined it. I wanted every detail set in my mind like someone branded it there. I stood there for a long time, just staring at the scenery. I needed every detail to get this just right. This project seemed impossible. The lake extended out of sight, far beyond what I could see. Satisfied I closed my eyes and focused. I listened to Raina's even breathing. In. Out. The image built in front of me. Every detail was just as I had seen it. All I had to do was add water and stir. I felt it then, it clicked. For a moment everything seemed possible, every aspect of life was easily understandable. In this moment of clarity I opened my eyes. I did it. To an extent. The lake was about half filled. Raina was frowning again.

"Very good," she said distractedly, "Now drain it." This confused me but I did as I was told. Once again I opened my eyes, but this time they opened to find the dry, empty lake. "Now, walk with me." We walked around the lake. Side-by-side. No idle conversation, there was a very serious air around us. It felt like if I disrupted it I would fall apart. Like the uncomfortably pressure of the situation was the only thing holding me together. Raina only spoke once, at the beginning of the walk, to tell me to observe every detail. I dutifully did as I was told and observed everything I could. The lake was about twice as large as I could see from our first vantage point. It was all still very dry but I didn't know how a body of water this massive could have dried up.

We returned to our starting point and Raina instructed me to fill the lake again. I repeated the focus process. I included what I had learned on our walk. The lake must have held a lot of water. Millions of gallons maybe. I had no idea if I had enough power to do that. Make that much water? Why not try? I felt everything click again but was washed with a sudden tiredness that brought me to my knees. I would have passed out right there but I heard Raina gasp so I opened my eyes.

All around my knees was water. Lapping up against me in gentle waves. I had not moved from my spot on the grass, but here was water. I looked up at Raina in confusion.

"You overflowed the lake. You increased the shore line by at least ten feet." She said astonished. Turning to me she said, "That'll do pig, that'll do." And I passed out in the water. I heard a distant splash and I was gone.

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Where did he get this immense power? Isn't this interesting. Now you guys have to keep reading to find out! Muahahaha! I caught you in a trap! But seriously, remember I'm trying to meet my weekly goals, so review. I'm glad I'm starting to get a constant length for each chapter, finally. Also, I'm going to write something about Leo's past, but should I make it a couple of chapters in this story? Or a separate short story, like a prologue. Kinda up to you. I plan to do it in this story, like when he finally explains to Terra "What the fuck is indeed up". So, till next time! Bye! Review!


	9. Leaving Safety

Ok, first I'm gonna remind you guys of my goal. One review! Anyway, I'm glad I'm getting lots of views, but its like sixty people read the first chapter, then forty-five people read the next chapter, and so on. Its like people decide my story isn't worth reading and that's depressing. As a personal goal, I am trying to make this my longest chapter yet, so wish me luck. On with the story.

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I stumbled into Terra's home dead tired. Raina was teaching me focus of my powers. God, it was draining. The creation of the water had drained a huge amount of energy, but after that Raina had me keep working. Creating everything from baseballs to buildings, people to pokemon. I just wanted to climb up to my room, collapse on my bed, and fall so deep into sleep I wouldn't have any horrible nightmares.

To bad life decided that was too much to give me.

Terra ran in with Ember in her arms. She stopped for a second looking worried, then she dropped Ember and gave me a hug. Ember complained but I was too shocked to acknowledge her. Not knowing what to do I just stood dumbstruck in Terra's embrace. When she pulled back she still looked worried. I must have looked a wreck, like I hadn't slept in weeks. At least that was how I felt.

"What happened?" Terra asked, "Where did go and why do you look... dead." Her eyes were filled with concern. I couldn't fathom why. I had known her, what, a week? And in that time I had apparently angered her, taken her guest room, and broken her window. By the way, I do not intend to pay for that.

"I'm fine. Why do you care? I just want to get some sleep." I said. I wasn't in a particularly good mood.

"Come on, I made dinner. I hope you like spaghetti and meatballs." Now I was in a good mood.

I followed her into the kitchen and found two steaming plates of food. My god they looked good. And when you're like me, super powered, all your senses are increased. It looked better than usual, it smelled amazing, and even from five feet away I could taste it. I dove into my chair and was about to dig in when I noticed Terra still standing in the doorway, watching me. Sighing, I put down my fork and turned toward her.

"Whats wrong Terra? You made this awesome dinner, sit down and eat. After all it is your house." I smiled. She hesitantly walked over and sat down across from me. She looked nervous, like something was haunting her and she could feel it. I waited patiently until she started eating before digging in myself. When the tension in the room neared an unbearable level I had to breach the silence.

"Terra, whats wrong with you. You aren't being yourself. Granted I've only known you a few days, but in those days you have always been open, energetic, fun, and in all honestly, annoying. This isn't you, what is wrong?" I was honestly worried. She looked up shocked, like maybe I was threatening her. Her lip quivered a little before she spoke.

"I'm scared, Leo. When you came crashing through my window, _with wings_, I didn't know what to think. And the display of power you gave that first day I brought you home. It scares me. It is just now hitting me that your vastly more powerful than I will probably ever realize. So, I'm scared you will get angry when I ask you what I'm about to ask you." She was apprehensive. I didn't know what she was getting at, but I assumed it had something to do with getting out of her house and never seeing her again. Well, surprise!

"Will you come with me on a pokemon training journey?" She was now glowing with anticipation. My jaw hit the floor, I just didn't know how to respond to that. "Not now of course, I need a few weeks to prepare. And, in case you haven't realized, though I think you have, when I captured you in a pokeball in the Pokemon Center, I never released you. I own you." Confidence. I swear she was bi-polar. My jaw dropped again. I had felt the minute connection, but hadn't thought much of it.

I turned back to my spaghetti, it was getting cold. I stuffed my face, buying time to think. My encounter with experiment 02235 had me think about how I wasn't safe in this one place. But if I started moving I might not get anywhere near Silph again. At the same time though I would undoubtedly get stronger if I traveled. Then I thought of Raina. How could she train me?

I finished my food and stood to excuse myself. Terra stood with me. I looked into her eyes with one thought on my mind.

"Why?" I asked. She smiled ate me.

"It was always my dream to be a trainer-" She started.

"Just like every other teen ever." I mocked

"but when I got Ember, she wasn't one who liked to battle. I had to respect that, I couldn't force her to do what she didn't want to. But I was thinking that if you were my pokemon, I would be unstoppable." Now she was grinning like a loon. Definitely bi-polar. I didn't know what to do. Time to stall for more time.

"Not that I'm agreeing to go with this, but when would we leave?" I asked. Oh god, her face lit up.

"In two weeks. That would give me enough time to prepare and you enough time to do whatever. What do you say?" Expectant now. Is she taking pills? I sighed.

"I'm going to bed. I have to think about this." I said. Now she pouted. Maybe she was horribly sick and mood swings were a symptom. Oh well. I headed toward the stairs. I heard her ask Ember a question.

"Do you think this is a good idea?" She sounded depressed. Ember gave no response. I was too tired to dwell on it longer, time for sleep.

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**Empty space. All around me was empty space. This has got to be the best dream I have ever had. At least it was until a bubbly, blue, little sprite appeared in front of me. I would have jumped back from the spinning blue creature if I could, but I was held in space. When the creature finally stopped I was able to identify it.**

"**Mew. Who would have thought I would meet Mew. Even if this is only a dream. I expected you to be pink." I was still tired in the dream for some reason. Mew did another flip and spoke.**

"**What? I like blue, it's calming. And this is no dream Leo, welcome to Eternity. This is where the spirits of the dead go before a destination is decided for them." I gasped. "And no you're not dead. I just needed to talk to you. You need to go on this journey with Terra. I know it seems like I'm deciding your fate for you, but you do not want the alternative." I couldn't figure out if it was a guy or a girl. Its voice gave no indication. Not the point.**

"**What is the alternative?" I asked. Mew frowned, did a flip and I suddenly found myself floating above the city. Except it wasn't the city. The city I knew wasn't a burning wasteland with soldiers running around in it.**

"**They would find you." Mew said, "They would destroy the city in a search for you. After they couldn't find you because you were hiding with Raina, they would use DNA scanners to find you. They would kill you, kill Raina, and use your DNA to build a half-breed army. Silph would take over the world. Just don't do it." She/he smiled again as the image faded. I didn't know what to say. My path was set for me. "Just remember that the path is never set for you. This is still your choice to make." Damn psychic bitch/basterd.**

"**Well," I said, "since your reading my mind, you know that I have already decided to join her to save Terra, the people of the city, and myself. So... what is your gender?" Mew hit me across the face with her/his tail.**

I would have probably dismissed that as a realistic dream, but my head hurt. I got dressed and walked out into the living room. Terra wasn't awake yet. I could hear her snoring in the next room. My god, she sounded like an asthmatic truck driver. Ember was sitting on the floor watching TV. It sounded like cartoons. How old was she again? She looked up as I walked in.

"Hey Ember, can you tell Terra I went out?" I asked. She was giving me a strange look. Suddenly she jumped at me and clung to my face. I staggered around, blinded obviously, knocking over several objects. All unidentifiable. After a small struggle, I managed pry Ember off my body. She wiggled trying to reach me. I held her at arm's length just to be safe. Finally she stopped struggling.

"Sorry," she sighed, "I'm in my heat cycle and couldn't restrain myself when I saw you. I just don't get much male contact you know? All I wanted was a little action. And come on, lets admit it. You've got the hardware to get the job done. I mean" I set her down facing the TV and she immediately silenced herself. She stared blankly at the screen, a little bit of drool hanging from her mouth. Aww the wonders of television.

I left the house quietly, taking a house key I found next to the door. I still don't know how I got lucky enough to avoid people of the city every time I left the house, but fate, or Mew, decided my luck wouldn't hold. As I turned the last corner heading out of the city I smacked into someone. He ended up on the ground while I laughed my as off. I stopped laughing when he looked up and I realized what just happened. I held eye contact with the boy for nearly a minute.

He was a simple person. Dark brown hair, brown eyes, and a round face. Strikingly though there was a long, pink scar that went from his right temple across his jaw that ended in a swirl on his left cheek. It would have looked artistic, except, you know, it was hideous. The boy showed no fear as he stood up and brushed himself off. I was still open-mouthed at the scar. I mean, you just don't see something like that often. When he finally looked up from brushing himself off he was angry.

"That's right, you asshole, just gawk at the scar. Don't offer to help me up or anything. I don't need the sympathy of some freak in a Pikachu suit." He fumed. I couldn't help it, I laughed. I had never been confronted with disbelief before. I've come across fear, anger, surprise, joy, lust, and even hope, but never once disbelief. I laughed long and hard. Then he grabbed my face and started pulling.

"Come on, take off the mask. I want to see the face of the rude freak." He said. I stood patiently as he pulled at every angle of my cheeks. I now knew what it felt like to have relatives home for the holidays. Thanks random stranger!

I was fed up with him at the point at which he had climbed on my shoulders and was pulling at my chin. And yes, it was very painful, thank you for being concerned. Suddenly he gave an exasperated gasp and climbed off me.

"I give up." Finally, now maybe he realized that- "You used some quality glue for that mask." … dumb ass.

"It's not a mask." Gasp, "Whats your name kid?"

"Ironically, Scar." He said. Whatever you do Leo, don't laugh. "My mother had no idea I would have a horrible accident and end up getting this. And what do you mean it isn't a mask? What else could it be?" He asked

"Well, I'm Leo and I'm a mutant." Gasp, "No real connection there, but I'm part Pikachu and proud of it." With that I decided I had spent too much time talking to this walking irony. I turned to leave. He followed. I looked back and he tried to hide behind a mailbox. Dumb ass. I kept walking hoping he would go away. No such luck. I looked back again and Scar dove behind a tree. Sighing I kept walking. If he kept this up I wouldn't be able to go to Raina. I looked back a third time and found Scar no where in sight. Smiling, I turned back towards the city limits.

And screamed in the face of Scar.

"How did you get in front of me?" I yelled.

"I... I don't know. So where are you going Leo?" He asked. How do I come to meet idiots?

"You don't need to know." I sighed, "And if you don't go away I will use thunder wave on you."

"Wow! You can use attacks? Hey, I wonder, could you-" Zap. Well I did warn him. Time to get to Raina's. And I dashed away from the paralyzed boy. He'll be fine.

Raina was outside again, tending her garden. She looked up as I neared. I don't know why, she can't see after all. I smiled anyway and greeted her.

"So, I never really got to see what you could do with transformation yet, so we are going to work with that today." She said. She seemed distant today, distracted. She gave me a list of transformations to perform. Everything from Ekans to Skarmory. At one point she made me turn into a human just to see if I could do it. I could.

So now I could blend in with almost any, scratch that, any, society I wanted to. Then she gave me a task that would supposedly challenge my abilities and, if things didn't go right, ruin the natural balance of life. Awesome.

"I want you to change into each of the legendaries. Every single one. The reason this could upset the natural balance is that there is only supposed to be one of each. But, why not try." She sounded confident. I wasn't so much. Thoughts such as an angry Rayquaza roaring down from the skies frightened me. I did as I was told never the less. It was more difficult because after my first failed flight I had been extra careful to include every detail I could into my transformations and creations. Each one of my legendary transformations had every power I could think of that they should have. I changed back from Latios and stopped.

"What is wrong Leo?" she asked, concerned. I only had Arceus, Rayquaza, Mewtwo, Mew, Dialga, Palkia, Giratina, Lugia, and Ho-oH left. But these were THE legendaries, the top of the top. I feared what would happen when I tried to become them. "Are you tired? Do you need to stop?"

"No, I was just wondering what would happen. I after all I only have the best of the best left. I don't think we could handle them if they got angry. I'm scared, Raina, these are powerful creatures I'm dealing with." I felt it had been a proud, noble speech. She started laughing. She continued laughing. Some more laughing. Still laughing. I actually had to kick her to make her stop. She stood, gasping huge breaths between giggles. "May I ask what is so funny?" I sighed.

"The legendaries are pompous assholes who build themselves up way more than they should. Most of them are harmless. In fact the majority of them are wimps. Your only worries are probably Giratina and Arceus because their egos are slightly more bloated than the rest of them." She laughed.

"Should I ask how you know so much about the legendaries?" I asked.

"I told you already, I'm ancient, older then most of the dirt on this planet. I knew Rayquaza when he was a wimpy little snake." Thunder crackled in the sky. "Yeah, it's kind of a touchy subject with him. Anyway, finish." She said, still laughing I might add. I sighed and went through the rest of the transformations without incident. Mew was fun. In his/her body you were weightless, and giddy. I almost didn't want to change back. Mewtwo made me feel powerful, though he was Mew's equal. In Arceus I felt like I should dominate everything I saw. Or mount it. I guess that's why they call him the Alpha Pokemon. "That was good Leo, just Mew is pink, not blue." I shrugged.

"He was blue when I met her. He said she liked blue, it's calming." I smiled.

"When did you meet Mew? And why do you keep switching his gender?" Raina asked.

"So she is a guy?" I countered, avoiding the subject.

"I don't know if she is a guy, or if he is a girl. Where did you meet Mew?" She was persistent.

"In a dream. She spoke to me and he told me what would come if I made some wrong decisions." I said. Raina was staring, concern furrowing her brow.

"She isn't supposed to reveal people's futures. Why would he-? Crap, now I'm doing it. I really need to find out what it is." I nodded, eager to change subjects. Now though I felt it was time to tell Raina what was on my mind.

"Raina, what would you do if I wanted to leave?" I asked.

"What do you mean leave?" She asked back.

"I mean, leave the city. Travel. What would you do? I couldn't continue my training if I wasn't with you." I said.

"Why? Where would you go? Who would you go with? You can't leave Terra, your destinies are intertwined. The separation of you two could cause something drastic." She said matter-of-factly.

"Because," I sighed, "she wants to go on a pokemon journey and wants me to come. I thought about it and this would probably be best. Silph will try to corner me and force me back to their rat hole. If I'm constantly on the move, they might not be able to get to me. Also, just me being here puts everyone in the city in danger. I'm not selfish, I don't want innocent people to die because I wouldn't stop hiding. And further more-. Wait you never said what you would do." Raina stood and faced me.

"Well you need to finish your training, that's not an option. How long before you leave?" She asked.

"Two weeks." I said.

"That should be nearly enough time. I guess I'm coming with you." She smiled. I just stared, then smiled and hugged her.

"Thank you, Raina. I will feel a lot better knowing you will be close by." I said.

She returned the hug with warmth. In that moment I felt a rightness I hadn't felt in a long time. I regretfully broke the hug and smiled at Raina.

"I need to go tell Terra what I have decided. Will you come back with me? To greet her and tell her your coming, and maybe explain what I have left to do everyday for the last week?" I asked hopefully. I knew they would meet eventually, why not sooner than later. Raina smiled again and changed into a normal Ninetails.

"Of course. I never formally met Terra. This should be... fun?" I laughed and we ran back to Terra's home. It felt different, better, to run the now familiar track with a friend.

The next two weeks passed in a blur. A mix of preparing and training kept me busy during all parts of the day and some parts of the night. I hadn't dreamt at all, which I was grateful of, but the worst was to come. But for now life was on the fast track to being better. We stood at the exit of the city. Raina and I in pokemon forms (I had long ago explained transformation to Terra), with Terra standing behind us.

"Everyone ready?" Terra asked. Raina and I gave our respective pokespeak responses, for show of course. "All right, let's go!" With that motivational shout Terra started running into the grasses of the surrounding city. We would be back. Oh, unfortunately, we would be back.

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The shadow appeared in the alley between two buildings.

"They are leaving." It said to seemingly no one.

"Follow." The same monotone voice droned out. The shadow crept back into the alley and disappeared. He would teach them not to be so eager to leave the safety of a city.

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I did it! Longest chapter I have written so far. Ok, question and answer time. Should I kill off characters? And I mean main, good characters. How should Raina reveal herself as Leo's mother? And, why aren't you douches reviewing? Well? Anyway, Scar is an OC sent to me by P.M. He will have a bigger role later. Till then, Bye!


	10. Rain for Raina

First off, I made my goal! Everyone cheer please. In fact I actually got eight reviews, so second round of cheering. The only problem is seven of them come from the same person, all anonymous, calling himself bonerific! I mean, honestly? They are all unnecessarily negative, but all the same, really funny. Go look at them and tell me what you think, they are so stupid. Now, I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while, I've been enjoying my spring break, if you know what I mean. *hint, hint and nudge, nudge* No not really, but I have been distracted by partying. So, since I'm starting this chapter in the middle of the week, this goal will apply to next week as well.

WEEKLY GOAL: Get 200 views.

Very simple, so help me out! Tell your friends, parents, pets, anything with Internet access. 200 views!

You can do it! Also in this chapter I am telling the purpose of the title change, and I have decided that the region this story is taking place in will be one of my own creation. It will have everything all other regions have. Gyms, towns, large market cities, random islands, everything. So, on with the fic!

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"Where the hell are we going? When will we get there?" Ember asked. We had been walking for about ten minutes.

"The town with the professor in it, of course. Which one is that?" Terra responded. I sighed.

"Your thinking of Sapling Town. This is where you will find Professor Pine, who will give you your trainer's license and pokedex, officially starting you on the Ooame Region Pokemon Challenge." I informed Terra. She thought for a moment then said.

"Why is our region called the 'Heavy Rain' region? It only rains like once a month in Oakridge."

"Because of how far south the city is, it avoids the mass majority of the crazy rain this region usually has." I looked up. Storm clouds were gathering. "We have about a mile to go until we reach the first heavy shower. Then another three miles until we reach the town." I said. At least she was asking reasonable questions.

"How do you know so much?" She asked

"I just do." I responded.

"Why are your ears so long?" She asked.

"Because I'm part pikachu." I said. This went beyond reasonable questions.

"How come-" I shoved a lollipop in her mouth.

"From now on, you think before you speak. You have as much time as it takes the lollipop out of your mouth to think. I hope that is enough." I glared. She was about to open her mouth when she remembered the lollipop.

"Where did you get this?" She asked. Crap.

"No where." I shut up and continued walking. Raina sighed.

"This is going to be a long trip." She followed me, leaving Ember and Terra confused.

It turns out I was right. We had to stop under thick trees when it started raining hard enough to actually hurt. I could have made some umbrellas for the entire group, but I wouldn't until they asked me directly. I actually found I could harden my fur to not even feel the rain. I suspected Raina was doing the same thing, but I had no proof. As we sat under a big pine tree I marveled at natural construction.

The large tree was specifically a wayward pine. The branches started growing about five feet off the ground and grew out seven feet in every direction. The needles meshed together in a solid mass, effectively keeping out all the rain. There was a large dome space, where we were sitting, formed when the weight of the limbs became to much, drooping to a foot off the ground. The tent created was spacious and warm. We all sat quietly around a fire courtesy of Ember. The flames danced before my eyes, smoke spiraling into the air lazily. Spinning elegantly. I noticed Raina watching the smoke wistfully. The glazed look in her eyes made her look drunk, but I knew she was simply thinking.

"What's on your mind, Raina?" She looked up, still deep in thought.

"_I pass on now, from this life to next._

_The causes though, are ones to vex._

_I did no wrong, made no sin._

_It seems this time, I will not win._

_Through the earth, I begin to fall,_

_landing gently, in the darkest hall._

_Walking slowly, between pictures framed._

_Pictures of people, who have been maimed._

_They're sad, I cry,_

_I don't know why._

_I reach the end, of my long walk._

_This is it, where death will stalk._

_But only here you will find,_

_a very special kind,_

_of beauty before your eyes._

_The sight of a million black butterflies_." Raina quoted. I sat silently, contemplating what I just heard. I looked up and I could see it.

The smoke was forming dancing butterflies. Black butterflies.

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I know this was really short, but I don't care. I actually wrote the poem myself, spur of the moment, so don't let anyone else tell you otherwise. That is going to be influential later, so remember it. Also tell me what you thought of it, cause I thought it was good considering I made it on the fly. Anyway, till next time! Review!


	11. Names for a Son

I would like to start by thanking MohamedA. He is the first person to favorite this fic. Thank you! Everyone applaude him (random applause from somewhere). He gets a trophy! (Hands Mohamed a pile of chewed gum shaped like a grammy) Have fun with that Mohamed! So, remember that my goal is 200 hits, help me out on this. Someone sent me a P.M. Asking what the black butterflies meant. I'm going to take this chapter to consider his request. If by the end I have decided to tell him what is kinda obvious (or so I think), I will, but if not, reread the poem. It explains it if you look into it a little bit. Also, heads up so if you didn't read this you will be horribly confused, this chapter will be in Raina's point of view for the first half. So, on with the fic!

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**Raina**

The others had long gone to sleep. I continued to lye on my back watching the butterflies fly into the tops of the tree with my ultra sense. Black butterflies. So dangerously beautiful. I stood and faced the tree. I knew that these butterflies did not fly without purpose, and the message must have been aimed toward me since I was the only one who could have seen their significance. Focusing, I fashioned my hands into claws and began climbing the tree. The butterflies were guiding me, I knew that, so I had to follow obediently or else I would not know what the higher powers wanted of me. The ruff bark under powerful claws gave a satisfying crunch with each new handhold.

I kept climbing until I found the butterflies flying in circles, no longer in a specific direction. The danced aimlessly, moving here and there until dispersing suddenly in a large smoke screen. When my senses cleared I smiled at who was sitting across from on a branch. He patted by his side and I climbed over.

Beside me was another of my kind, an ancient pokemon who has attained transmutation. His energy was at a level to which I could actually pick out the details of him. This specific individual had piercing blue eyes, the kind that you got lost in for hours, though they were gentle. His thin, muscular frame was slouched to keep balance on the branch. He wore plain shorts, a white under-shirt, and a heart warming smile that I found to be infectious. His dark orange fur complimented the brown of his hands and long, curling ears. He had an ethereal green glow about him that made him ghostly. Unfortunately this was more then an effect. But this raichu was no less handsome for it.

I smiled and asked, "So what has my long dead mate come all this way to tell me? Hm, Calanon? And why such a flashy entrance, you could have just waited until the others were asleep."

He smiled, and I had to pull myself from his eyes, which even through my blind eyes were attractive, "The gods gave me four hours from hell to speak with you, so I decided to make it memorable. We need to talk about our son." He frowned. Somehow his didn't seem any less warm and inviting for it.

"What," I said, "am I not teaching him to your specifications? For your information, he has more power then anything I have ever known, even most of the legendaries. He could rightfully challenge Mewtwo."

"I know," Calanon replied, "this is what worries me. When we lost him, we hoped that he would be taken by a caring trainer. You stayed near him, wanting to be part of his life in someway, and it was you who discovered he was being experimented on. What I'm worried about is that he would already be more powerful then either of us because we are both ancient in mind and body, or were in my case, but the experimentation has pushed him well beyond that. I'm worried that his inner power will rip him to pieces from inside. And god forbid he finds out your his mother before he is ready and discovers his fire potential. This could go wrong so many ways, and only one path leads the right direction, and thats is so dangerous it could easily push him from it. Do understand?" He turned to find me asleep. "RAINA! This is serious!" I snapped awake and glared at him.

"I heard everything you jerk. I was closing my eyes to think about things. He doesn't even know his true name, Calanon. Or that he has a sister." I said, "I have tried to see into his future, and so many shadowy figures are there. There are many people who will have great influence in his life." Calanon looked worried.

"I have tried, and seen much the same." He said, "Only time will tell what is to come. All I know is that he has a great destiny. His actions will mean the outcome of this world." He sighed. "For all we know, it may come down to one of us, his parents, having to kill him for the better." This thought made me sob. I tried to lean into Calanon, to cry into his shoulder, but I fell through him and almost fell of the branch.

"You know its a damn inconvenience that you had to go and die. I told you to be careful around humans, but did you believe me? No, you thought they could be reasoned with. And you now your idiotic actions landed you as a guardian." His anger flashed.

"If I'm not mistaken, your traveling with a distrustful hume right now! So don't patronize me for thinking they could be trusted. And I still think some of them can be." I glared.

"I don't have a choice, Leo trusts her. You know what, I'm going to find a covert way to tell him his true name tomorrow. Leo is no substitute for Raunien." I said smiling.

Calanon smiled, "I never understood your devotion to the old names."

"They have purpose, power. Raina means Gracious, Calanon means light, and Raunien, which is short for Bellrauthien, means strong as a lion. All our names are fitting. And you know full well I didn't chose his, it was designed, long before he was born." We sat in though for a little while. It was a comfortable silence. Were he not glowing, I would have most likely forgotten Calanon was even beside me. I longed to hold him. It felt like a man had branded my heart with the word "need." I need a tangible man to hold. Calanon touched my shoulder, I only noticed because the glow of his aura became suddenly brighter. I looked at him and he was smiling warmly. He closed his eyes and sighed.

"My time is done here, Raina. There are infinitively more things I want to tell you. But there is only one you need to know. I love you, and always will. Even in the land of the dead, you are the only woman for me." Somehow he kissed me. His mouth became tangible and I kissed him back with all my might. We stayed like that until he faded from the living, the tree becoming solemn and dark. I sighed and opened my eyes, not realizing I had closed them, and dancing in the wake of the dead were black butterflies.

I climbed back down to the forest floor content. I looked at the sleeping Leo, though he would be Raunien soon. He looked like his father, so very much. I had to resist the urge to go snuggle up against him. Instead I lied down on the ground bringing up the memory of my ghostly discussion. There were far to many things left unsaid. I fell asleep wondering how he would take the news that he was wholly pokemon.

**Leo**

**A raichu sat in front of me. He was smiling warmly. His blue eyes were eerily familiar to me, but I couldn't figure out what it was. Suddenly a large swarm of black butterflies flew from no where and began circling the raichu. Now he was smiling sadly, almost regretfully. As the swarm became thicker I began to panic. I had felt a strange connection to this pokemon, I began firing electricity into the cloud of butterflies. Several holes appeared in the tight fit formation. Through one I could see the now shocked, and scared, face of the raichu.**

"**No Leo! Stop!" And I did. Something was very familiar about the voice of this strange raichu. After the creatures reformed they turned on me, flying into me knocking me on my ass. I opened my eyes and a floating develish skull was staring me down.**

"**Don't try to follow your father." It opened it's mouth and moved towards me.**

I screamed and sat up. Suddenly Terra, Ember, and Raina were beside me with concerned looks. The terror of the nightmare left me shaking.

"Whats wrong Leo?" It was Raina, "You were thrashing in your sleep and then you were here, screaming bloody murder. Are you ok?"

"Yeah," I said, "Just a nightmare. I was looking at a... raichu? I can't remember now. I just remember the plain terror." I pushed a side a clump of needles and looked outside of our natural tent. "It has stopped raining. Lets try to get to Sapling before it picks up again." Raina looked shaken, but nodded. We headed out after packing, hopefully we would be registering Terra today. But with our luck? Who knows?

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I don't know why, but after the longest chapter of the story thus far, I can't write very long chapters. Oh well. Anyway I have decided to tell you that the poem should explain the black butterflies. So remember, 200 hits. Also, I don't know if I have told this already but, I write every chapter totally of the top of my head. Like introducing Leo's father was totally spur of the moment. I would like to thank Google, and for the names for most of my characters. They have nearly every name translated into evlish. READER CHALLENGE. My elvish name is Turwaithian, first person to find out what my real name, and what it means wins a undecided prize. Hint: It is not Nicholas. Have fun! And thanks again to MohamedA, my first favoriter... er..... YAY!!!


	12. Scar is Back!

First, thanks again to MohamedA and, recently, snintendog for favoriting. Thank you! Everyone clap! Ok stop clapping, my head hurts. Lately I have had horrible writers block, as every writer gets at one point or another, and have been reading some old stories to find inspiration. To any one who likes pokemon stories with some feeling in them, I recommend the story "Dark Growlithe" by Gardie. It is really good, and a time worthy read. Unfortunately he ended it open ended, begging for a sequel, and never wrote one. I'm hoping with enough people asking for a sequel he will eventually cave. Also, I need inspiration more then ever now and I am still excepting OCs (original characters). You can look back in one of the previous chapters for the template. I think chapter 5? But now I'm stalling, so on with the fic!

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We had started to encounter other people as we walked and Raina and I had changed into pokemon forms. I'm really surprised that Terra didn't ask how we did it every ten seconds. She only asked every twenty seconds. I was happily sitting on her head at the moment singing a happy tune to myself. It was some where between Mambo Number 5, and Don't Worry, Be Happy. Ember was sitting on Raina's back chatting her ear off. Literally, her ears actually started slumping to the ground, and I expected them to keep sliding down her head until she was blissfully deaf and blind.

I turned back to the path in front of us when Terra stopped abruptly. There was a boy standing in the middle of the road. He was wearing cut-off jean shorts, a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a Panama Jack straw hat. He looked sun-burnt and carried a butterfly net. It was then that I knew it. He was a fruit cake.

He pointed at Terra and yelled, remember we are like, four feet away, "Are you a trainer? I challenge you to a pokemon battle!"

Terra sighed, we had been dealing with yahoos like this all day, "No, I'm not a trainer. Go away fruit cake." Yes! Someone agrees with me!

He only glared, "You have pokemon with you! They look strong, but my Bug pokemon could beat them easy!" Why on earth was he shouting?

"I'm telling you that I'm not a trainer. I'm going to Sapling to get my pokedex and license." God, this guy wouldn't take no for an answer.

"I won't take no for an answer!" Duh, "The rules of The league says that if another trainer challenges you, you have to accept!" He was getting irritating.

I leaned down and whispered in Terra's ear, "Can I just shock him and we can get going?" I smiled at the thought of his hat be black with bits of hair sticking out of it at odd angles.

Terra sighed again, "Nope, we might as well just battle him. And your up!" With a smile she threw me in front of her. "Just try not to 'miss', ok?" She said to me winking. Oh, shes good. And to the bug catcher, "Fine I'll battle you, one pokemon each."

He smiled triumphantly, but not for long, and backed up, "Go, Weedle!" A weedle appeared in a flash of red light. It stared at me and said the most stupid thing I have ever heard from something semi-inteligent.

"Hmjka! Fartsfomyunga!" It said. I responded in the only way that would have been appropriate.

"What... the... FUCK?" Unfortunately it came out in human speech and I had to recover quickly. "I mean, Pika Pi Pikachu?" Smooth as glass.

Terra face palmed and called out, "Let's make this quick and painless. Leo, Thunderbolt!" I complied. In my pikachu body, generating electricity felt different somehow, like it was the same amount of energy in a smaller size, making it more powerful. When I unleashed the lightening it was like a violent eruption, like popping a champagne bottle, but it felt better. The poor, gibberish speaking weedle was out in one hit. Maybe it was best I had put it out of its misery. The bolt was powerful enough to continue through the weedle and hit his idiot trainer on the other side. It was everything I had imagined.

The trainer returned his pokemon and ran away crying. I know I should have felt bad, but I didn't. Fruit cake needed some sense knocked into him. Terra just nodded and returned me to my throne of honor, her soft hair. When we continued walking I had a thought.

"Terra, what level do you think I am? Do I even have levels? How many attacks can I learn?" The questions just kept pouring out. I needed some answers. Terra responded to the best of her ability.

"I don't know, why the hell are you asking me?" I frowned. Maybe later I would ask Raina how to contact the legendaries.

Once again I was shaken from my thoughts by Terra coming to an abrupt stop. When I looked at who it was I gasped, at nearly the same time as Terra. The boy in front of us was dressed casually, but obviously traveling. But, standing out on his face, highlighted by the sun, was a long white scar.

My old buddy Scar was here! Wonder what he wanted.

"You, are you a trainer?"

Terra sighed for the bamillionth time that day, "No, but if you want a battle, fine. Come on Leo." I jumped down from her head ready. This would hopefully be fun.

Scar frowned, "No, I don't want a battle, I was hoping you were headed for Sapling town. I don't like traveling alone, to many creeps in the woods at night." I laughed out loud. Everyone stared at me, but I didn't care. He was complaining about creeps when most people would piss there pants if they saw him at night. I mean, come on, he looked like a murderer with a battle scar. I laughed so hard that my form actually slipped back into my normal state. Scar gasped.

"You!" Uh-oh. "You paralyzed me and left me in the middle of the street! Do you know that I was frozen all day? Birds crapped on me! People threw change at me, thinking I was a street performer. One guy actually threw a rock at me!" I laughed harder. Raina glared at me, but I couldn't help it.

"Come on! He saw me and I had to go see you. Don't give me that 'Your going to be punished look.' Your not my mom." She cringed a little at that, and I made a mental note to ask about it later. Turning back to Scar I said, "A bird actually crapped on you? Wow, that has got to be a fun story. But, we are in a hurry and have to go." With that I grabbed Terra and started pulling her along. She struggled out of my grip though, and to this day I don't know how.

"Wait," she said, "why are you going to Sapling?"

Scar smiled, "To be a trainer of course. I'm going to be the most feared and respected trainer ever! I'm going to make 'Scar' a well-known name!" Then he striked a pose and said, "Then I shall take over the world with my secret organization! Scar Co.!" He striked up another pose. I would have busted out laughing again, but Terra hit me over the head with a rolling pin (where the hell?). "So can I travel with you?"

"Sure!" Terra said.

"Hell no!" I said.

Then Terra yelled at me, "He is coming whether you like it or not!"

So it was settled. We were traveling with a nut bag, a perverted chimchar, a half-breed, a crazy girl, and a really, really, _really_ old ninetails-

"_I heard that Leo, our thoughts are still connected telepathically."_ Raina said through our mental link.

who looked really, really, _really_ young. Our journey was going to be fun. We continued to walk, but by now it was getting dark. We were going to have to camp again.

**Ex 02235**

Ex 02234 walked away with his party. I almost didn't recognize him in the form of a regular pikachu, but I knew the girl, and that was enough. I kept watching, my orders being to only follow them, find out where they were going. The company had a special plan for his death, or capture, which ever came first. He smiled as the female anthro-pikachu stirred on the branch beside him. He siled at her, but then again, he siled at everything. The curse of being part gengar.

"You know what to do, 02236." She nodded and jump out of the tree. Her healthy legs bunched under her as she landed. Her back end was pleasing to see, and when she turned to look at him, giving him an excellent view down her shirt, he knew she would not fail. He would have had her himself were it not forbidden. Yes, he thought as she walked away, her hips swinging alluringly, she would complete her mission just fine.

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Oooh, new character. What is the purpose of this new girl? You just gonna have to read to find out. Remember to review, and maybe send in an OC of your own. They will enter Sapling next chapter, plenty of opportunity for some new characters. So, see you next time! Review!


	13. This is Punishment

Happy Easter! Hold the applause. I have over 200 hits on this story! … Why aren't you clapping? This is important! It means I can set a new goal for this week! 15 Reviews!!! You can do it! So, I have two, possibly three, steady readers. They are bad though. They haven't reviewed! Oh well. They'll come around. I n this chapter Leo and friends reach Sapling, and they meet 02236. I'm going to find a way to start giving names to the experiments, besides Leo, so for 02235 I need name ideas. And remember you can send in OCs. Now I warn you because this gets a little bit graphic, not sexually, but in the violent sense, if this offends you don't read it. I will mark off the bad zone, but will leave enough info so you know what happens. Read it or not, its up to you. So, on with the fic!

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It was raining again, harder then before. I had given in and made umbrellas for Terra, Scar, and Ember. We were currently walking along a concrete path that lead to the city. We had camped last night under a wayward pine again, this time with Scar. We soon found out he was crazy to a degree. He was honestly committed to taking over the world with his soon to exist corporation, Scar Co. I laughed at him, but that changed next to nothing. I had another nightmare that left me confused and scared. But, the past is the past. Now I was focused on finding the Pokemon Center, followed by the laboratory. The Pokemon Center was easy enough to find, the only giant building with a giant P on it. We walked inside and found it full to bursting. Every trainer in town was here. I was glad that Raina and I had changed into our pokemon forms, but I don't think we would have been very stand-outish in this crowd of nutbags.

In the center of the massive entry hall was a man parading about in a mudkip suit yelling some crap about pokemon. I caught what he was saying as we passed.

"... does no one want to buy this rare specimen?" He was shouting, "You'll never find anything like this anywhere else. 500 poke to start. Really? Has anyone ever seen a species like this ever? It looks to be almost human." He was holding what looked like a girl by the back of her neck. I stiffened when I realized he was talking about her. She was about five feet tall, give or take an inch or two, not counting the long pikachu ears sticking up from her head. She was dressed in rags of what looked like could have been very nice clothes. They barely concealed her yellow form, which looked to be strong, despite the wierdo holding her by the neck. I grew angry and leapt from Terra's shoulder where I was sitting.

"Leo, where are you going?" She looked concerned, so did Raina, but I ignored it. I grabbed an empty pokeball off of Terra's belt and ran to the back of the crowd, where it was unlikely I would be noticed. There I changed into a human form. I had never changed into a full human before so I didn't know what exactly what to make myself look like. I started with my face and head. I kept my high cheek bones and strong, though not prominent, chin. My ears were rounded and moved. How on earth did humans hear with these? You couldn't move them at all! And on the side of your head? That just made no sense. I removed the fur and was left with pink soft skin. I also kept my blue eyes, and for hair decided on shoulder length sandy blond, close enough to my usual fur color. I kept the slightly muscular body I had as a half-breed, but, once again, removed the fur. I also made myself taller, five foot eleven. I formed in black jeans, red shirt, and black wind breaker. These were similar to the first clothes Terra had gotten me.

Satisfied, I picked up the pokeball I had dropped during the transformation, and walked into the crowd, roughly pushing people aside. I had not time for them to bother me. When I reached the center I stepped in front of the others watching. The man in the mudkip suit was talking to an elderly looking gentleman. As I walked up I was disgusted by what they said.

"... could use her. My son is coming of 'that' age." said the gentleman, "I don't want him getting any girls pregnant, so I suppose he could use her to dispel his urges." The wierdo was shaking his hand vigorously with both of his own, leaving the pikahu girl standing looking uncertain. Perfect.

"Excelling, excellent. I wouldn't use her for anything more. So 1000 poke is our final-" He didn't get another word out before I had punched him full in the jaw, probably breaking teeth, sending him spinning into the wall. The crowd gasped and took a step back. The gentleman took three. I turned to him, I could actually _feel_ the anger dancing in my eyes. He took another step back. I cleared the distance between us with one step of my now longer legs, and picked the man up by suits collar. He squirmed and started begging me not to hurt him.

"Please, d-d-don't hurt m-me." He begged. I smirked.

"You should know that the buying and selling of pokemon is illegal. The buying and selling of humans is even worse, but what is the penalty when the two combined are sold I wonder?" I was speaking in a dangerous whisper, loud enough for only him to her, but now I shouted in his face. "No creature deserves that abuse! You should burn in Hell for what you intended! I should kill you now but I have a better punishment for a lowly man such as yourself." I pulled a hunting knife from its sheath, and yes I had just created it. Everyone was in too much shock to notice. I placed the blade on his neck and he whimpered. I smiled dementedly and moved the blade lower and stopped it over his heart. He shook his head no and I frowned and shook my head with him. I smiled again and slid the blade lower. It stopped to rest at the top of his stomach. He started to cry and shook his head again. Once again I frowned, feigning confusion. I shook my head again as if to clarify. He gulped and nodded. I smiled and nodded. He sighed a relief and relaxed a little bit, but tensed again when I did not release him and set him on the floor. He looked at me terrified again. I smiled and nodded a second time. I slid the blade lower at tapped it at his groin. His eyes opened in shock and I grinned evilly.

**This is the violent part. You don't have to read it, it is not totally necessary to the story, but it will be later and I have never written violent before. So skip to the next part of bold if this bothers you.**

Now I'm not prone to violent tendencies, but what this man had intended had thrown my body into a rage I did not know I contained. I in all honesty can't remember what happened. To know I had to force Raina to describe it. At first I cut simple hole in his pants. He had gone silent at this point, I assume he was trying to simulate bravery. I made it quick. With a quick jab and a slash he was disconnected. I dropped him to the floor and let him hold himself. I wiped the blade on his jacket as whimpered underneath me. He was bleeding now. A small puddle was forming around his body. He continued to cry while I leaned down to whisper in his ear.

"Now, you can never harm any woman again. Of course I'm only assuming you violate woman by the way treat them so I must know. Am I wrong? Are you a clean saint who I just punished unjustly? If you lie to me I will know. I will invade your mind to be sure when you answer me. So, are you a sick old man who take pleasure in the pain of others?" He didn't move or speak. "Answer me!" I roared. He curled into a tighter ball and nodded. I invaded his mind then. This I shall never forget.

His mind was full of images of tortured woman. Strapped to bed posts, lashes across there stomachs. One image was of a naked lady, quite obviously pregnant, being beaten on the ground by a group of men. The woman couldn't have been more then twenty-five. The old man was standing nearby in this image, watching with a grin on his face. The woman was bleeding horribly, her side was ripped open. Now she was no longer crying, just lying there, but the men continued to beat her. I pulled back from the man's mind in disgust. I stood quietly and walked to the mudkip man.

**Violence over. It will appear again. Maybe. Tell me if you liked it or not. It wasn't really as violent as I had originally planned, but it was still violent. I'm probably going to have to change the rating to M. Darn, but that will mean I won't need to put the eventual _intimate_ scene in a separate story! Anyway, back to the tale.**

Mudkip Man was still lying on the floor, groaning like he had just woken up. I picked him up from the floor and held him. All eyes were on me now, every person watching with a horrible sick pleasure, wanting to know what I would do to this man. They acted like this was a movie to be watched and not interfered with. I slapped the man, snapping him awake. He looked at me with fear. I pointed at the pikachu who was crumpled on the ground now staring openly at the old man who was about to buy her.

"Does she have a pokeball? Or did you just drag her from wherever you got her? I strongly suggest you answer unless you want to end up like your business partner over there." I turned him so he could see. He blinked and looked away.

"She doesn't have a pokeball. Please, just don't hurt me." I shoved him roughly back against the wall and let him drop. I walked over to the girl and knelt by her smiling warmly. She was still staring at the crumpled old man.

"Hey, there not gonna hurt you anymore. I just want to help you. Will you come with me?" I held up the pokeball. She looked at it strangely, like she wasn't really in her body, just watching what happened. She looked at me for a moment and nodded. I smiled again and held up the pokeball to her. She gave a small smile of thanks as she was drawn into the ball in a red beam. I stood and by now someone had called the police. Officer Jenny ran in and cried out at what she saw.

"What happened here?" She shouted to the crowd. I looked at her.

"These two men, the ones on the ground were committing and illegal act. The one in the mudkip suit should go to jail, but this one," I gestured casually at the old man, "just might need a hospital." I turned and walked towards a side hallway with Jenny yelling at me to freeze. Like anyone ever does? Terra, Raina, and Ember stared at me as I walked calmly past. They looked worried. I spoke to Raina telepathically. _"I'll explain later. Just don't yell at me. Yet."_ She frowned but nodded. The doors to the hallway closed behind me and I stood there thinking quickly.

Officer Jenny ran in. She looked around and only saw a trainer and their pikachu sleeping quietly. The trainer looked oddly familiar, but _she_ couldn't be the tall, muscular _man_ who she was chasing. Cursing she ran through the other door at the other end of the hall. Moments later, Terra and friends walked in and looked around. Terra jumped when she saw herself sitting on the bench that went along the hall. The pikachu stood and the sleeping Terra disappeared. The pikachu changed into a human form of me, only with dark brown hair, shorter, and thinner.

I frowned, "Please don't ask. I don't know why I did it. What they were doing was wrong." I looked at the pokeball I now had. "Come on, lets go heal everyone up." We walked out of the hallway. The people were already starting to disperse. The two men had been taken away. All that was left was some cracks in the wall and the puddle of blood, which people were avoiding. We made are way to the healing station and the annoyingly peppy Nurse Joy. From her we learned that the laboratory wasn't open today and opened at eight tomorrow.

"So," Terra said, still avoiding my eyes, "we'll just stay the night here."

"Um," Nurse Joy interjected, still annoyingly peppy, "all our rooms are taken for tonight. I'm sorry" Well this was depressing.

As we walked away I said, "So we will just get a hotel room. Easy." Everyone nodded, still avoiding locking eyes with me.

So it turns out, all the rooms in all of the even remotely decent hotels were filled. The only one we could find was in a real rat hole of a place. The windows were boarded in many places, ahingles falling off the roof, and the paint was peeling off the walls. Our room was no better. The shower, the beds, the T.V., a small fridge, and the toilet were all in the same small room. I was actually surprised when I saw two beds. And, as a bonus, they weren't completely filthy! They even had little mints on the pillows. Apparently the cleaning lady had a little bit of pride in her work. Just a little. I crashed on one of the beds and stared at the pokeball. After thinking for a moment I put it away. Terra was still staring at me, but looked away when I looked directly at her.

Suddenly she said, "Why?" Instantly all eyes were on me. I sighed and looked around. No one shrunk from my gaze now. It was comforting now. They looked concerned. Sighing again I gathered my thoughts before speaking.

"She just reminds me of me." Everyone looked confused. I laid back on the bed. "Thats right, none of you know where the hell I came from do you?" Everyone shook their heads no. "Now is as good a time as any I suppose. To start I wasn't born..." I continued to tell my story. As I spoke the images flashed before my eyes. They were sickening. My life was a hard one, but somehow it was comforting to know others had a harder life.

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I actually didn't like this chapter. It didn't feel right writing violently. I will probably need to write it again to follow the story plan I have in mind, but it probably won't be to heavy. Do you think I will have to change the rating? I hope not, but I'm going to just to be safe. Next chapter I put in Leo's past. Now we will know! I don't even know what it is. Yet. Also I'm going to put up a poll for whether or not The future lemon should be part of the story or not. So as always, so long! Review!


	14. New Mission

My computer has been on the fritz lately, and I actually wrote this originally on paper (shocking, I know). So I just wanna remind you that I put the poll up, I want to know what you think of lemons. This is going to be a small history of what Leo went through while under Silph's control. This won't be a complete rendering, just why he got mad that 02236 was being sold. Remember to review, and on with the fic!

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My past is one full of pain and hate. It is long and difficult for me to tell, but now I have a specific tale. Now, where to start...

I had meager living arrangements in my dorm/cell. In the ten foot by ten foot room I had a small cot, which I was laying on, against the right wall. On the left wall was a sink and toilet, side-by-side. Set in the back wall was a tiny closet where I kept my few belongings.

At the time I was reflecting on my last mission, in which I had extracted payment from a family by torturing their only daughter. Though it was gruesome, I enjoyed it for its simplicity and ease. I had only begun to sleep when my thoughts was interrupted by a loud banging on my door. I lifted my head without opening my eyes and yelled.

"What? You pricks better have a good reason for this!" Silph people didn't exactly put me in the best mood. A muffled voice yelled from the other side of the door, male, I noted.

"The Council has another mission for you freak. Bring your battle gear, you accident." Oh yeah, I felt the love.

"Give me ten minutes you fucking dick-suck." I yelled back. You may think it's not nice of me, but I was just following the golden rule. Treat others how you want to be treated. It was plain how he treated me, I only responded accordingly.

In my closet I had a total of three outfits. First, an army uniform for my common companionship with the military. Second, street clothes, a Christmas gift from my mother before... before she left. And finally, my battle suit. A solid black neoprene full-body suit. It looked like a wet-suit with padding on the chest and abdomen, also along the spine. Nano-tech made the suit bullet proof and invulnerable to every element, as well as form fitting and light as hell. I I missed anything from that hell hole, it would have to be that magical suit.

As I pulled on the suit, armored gloves, and black combat boots, I fantasized about what this mission could be. Probably an assisnation with some hidden catch, like a heavily guarded military estate. Especially after an easy mission. Oh well, I'll find out soon enough.

Suited up I walked into the hall. A big man was waiting directly outside, so when I walked out I bumped into him. Sending him sprawling against the opposite wall. I forget my strength sometimes, what can I say? He glared at me and I smirked. I needed some fun.

"Please excuse me miss, but it is rude and you really shouldn't haunt doorways. Now if you'll excuse me, I must go. The Council is waiting." I said with false apology and politeness. With a pat on the shoulder I walked towards The Council. The man muttered under his breath, but I heard it.

"Motherless freak." he said. I stopped cold, my humor lost. I heard him take a precautionary step back. Looking over my shoulder I gave the man a warning glance.

"Careful what you say _Mam_, you don't know _what_ you just made enemies with." I said the last part quietly, forcing him to strain to hear me. I continued walking, faster this time. I committed the man's face to memory. He'll get his due. I subconsciously noted the people moving to the side of the hallway as I passed, sensing my rage. These people knew respect.

The hall ended in a circular chamber with many doors. Without pause I turned to my left. In front of me was a large set of double doors. The Council. Taking a deep breath I pushed through and stood just inside. Twelve people in high backed chairs sat facing me, the light sets to were their faces were in shadow, but I was plain to see under heavy spotlight. They spoke in monotone, careful to cover any emotion, just like through the comm devices.

Directly in front of me, also bathed in white light, was a table. On the table was a gun holster, a pair of M9's, eight clips of ammo, a breaching shotgun, and two communication devices. A mission that involved guns? This would be good. I looked up and asked the fatal question.

"Well you bastards?" Golden rule. The leader spoke.

"Your insults are unnecessary, 02234. They don't faze us. When will you learn that we own you?" he said. This spiked my fury.

"My name is Leo. Now what is my mission?" I growled. They gave no response. "Well?"

"We are selling a group of our genetically enhanced pokemon. You and a strike force will go to the auction and defend our negotiator and product. After all the pokemon are bought, you will deliver them to the buyers." this was regular, but I had never attended an auction.

"To who and where?" I asked.

"Team Rocket, in Viridian City, but others will be there, Giovanni is our biggest buyer." I nodded. Again this was pretty standard. "You will leave in four hours, be at the hanger then. Prepare." I nodded.

I strapped the double holster over my shoulders and put the guns in their pockets. The extra magazines went in slots along a belt in the suit. The shot gun, which had a convenient strap, went across my back. I put one comm device in an ear, the spare was stored in a pocket.

Nodding to The Council, and giving a mocking bow, I left. I headed back to my room. It was time to prepare.

In one wall I had a secret pocket. For the last month I stored one weapon in it before departing. The Council hadn't noticed yet. Now I placed the shotgun inside, next to the three stun grenades, pair of USP .45's, ammo, and lots of remote mines. I was prepared for the worst, and it would all be necessary.

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O.K., this was a lot longer on paper, like, six pages. If you don't know what any of the weapons look like, I suggest Google. Any questions should be submitted in review form. Speaking of which, remember my goal of fifteen this week. You know what scares me? In the last however many days, since I made my story M rated, I've gotten more hits then in the last two months at a T rating. And still no real reviews! What's wrong with our world. See you next time! Review!


	15. The Auction

First, I apologize for not updating sooner, damn writer's block! Second, thanks to person (anonymous review) for giving this story its first legitimate review, and thanks to Sio Ce-ia for favouriting my story. I am currently strapping myself to a chair and swearing that I will submit this chapter or die from starvation! So, on with the fic!

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I was still sitting in the hotel room with Raina and Scar, waiting for Terra to get off the toilet. We were adverting eyes out of courtesy. Raina was unusually quiet and I was getting curious.

"Why are you not talking Raina?" I asked. She smiled sadly and looked at me. She looked like she was about to speak, but she was cut-off by Terra flushing the toilet and the sound of a content sigh.

"Well?" Terra asked, "What happened a Viridian that was so shocking?" I closed my eyes to focus the memory.

Viridian is bustling city, full of trainers and students, due to the pokemon school nearby. The team I was assigned to was a burly bunch of thugs, menacing and stupid looking. What many people don't realize is that Viridian is one of the most corrupt cities in any of the regions. This is due to the close proximity of Team Rocket. Just walking down the market street I found at least twenty offenses that would have led to jail for life. Everything from illegal drugs to hitmen. I would have probably stopped many of the acts in progress but the thugs followed me like loyal dogs. Except they were only loyal to the Council.

We made our way to the Gym. Here is where the deals would be taking place. I was appalled with what I saw when we entered the back room of the Gym. Along both walls were hundreds of cages. Every species of pokemon you could imagine. Most were lying on their sides, looking dead, but I could hear a faint heart-beat from each one. I walked slowly down the hall, counting every cage, aggravating the thugs stuck behind me. 677 cages with pokemon in them, another 128 were empty. I don't know how those pokemon managed to keep living, I would have given up long ago, but they were still fighting. This gave me courage and the implant of the thought. I knew what I had to do.

I was going to create the largest pokemon jail break anyone has ever seen. The only question was how. I could easily destroy the locks on the cages, but these thugs were sent on this mission for a reason, probably quick draw experts. Quicker then me? Possible.

At the end of the torture chamber was another door, presumably leading to the deal room. Inside was a round stage with chairs surrounding it all the way round. Sitting in one of the front seats was Giovanni. He greeted us coldly.

"Hello, men. The auction will begin in a half-hour, the auctioneers will arrive in fifteen minutes. Two of you will will watch that door, where they will be coming in." He gestured stiffly to the back of the room. Two of the thugs nodded and went to stand on either side of the door. "The rest will position themselves around the room. Watch everything, if you see something wrong don't hesitate." We all nodded and I turned to go to my post when Giovanni stopped me. "You, they told me about you. Tonight you will be my personal bodyguard. Stand behind my chair." I was disgusted by the idea of being so close to this man, but I didn't let it show on my face. Nodding again I positioned myself a step behind and to the right of Giovanni's chair. I quietly waited while the guests arrived and took there seats.

I had the plan fully formed in my mind by time the auction started. When everyone was fully absorbed into the bidding I would sneak back to the door I first came through, tell the guards that Giovanni wanted me to bring in a caged pokemon, quietly set them free, and return before anyone realized what was wrong.

"Full-proof." I mumbled as a man walked onto the stage. He had a demanding presence that quickly quieted the crowd. Smiling he bowed.

"Ladies and gentleman," he said in a commanding baritone, "welcome to the Team Rocket pokemon auction. Here you will see some of the most powerful pokemon you can find. Some even rival the legendaries..." his voice droned into background noise. About thirty minutes in several pokemon had been sold and were waiting in cages along the walls. I felt now everyone was appropriately absorbed into the buying and selling. I was about to make my temporary disappearance when I noticed two of the guards had come up behind me. Confused I turned to confront them and they quickly hand cuffed me. I tried to shock them but they were wearing rubber gloves. Damn lack of conductivity! I could now hear the announcer saying something interesting.

"Now for the best we will have today. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. A hybrid pikachu!" he smiled and threw his hands in the air. The guards dragged me up to the stage and kicked the back of my knees, knocking me to the ground. "He is genetically altered to be stronger then anything else alive. He has greater stamina, intelligence, and speed then anything naturally born to this earth!" I was getting angry, the kind of anger that slowly builds. It starts as a tingling in the back of your head, and soon it is causing your vision to go red, your adrenaline to start pumping, and your mind to think quicker. I felt it coming and tried to give an adequate warning.

"Let me go or I will rip your heads off." one of the thugs hit with the butt of his gun. This was too much. I kept the anger bottled, but it showed on my face. In reflection I could see fear on the faces in the crowd. They could see their own death coming. I was about to explode when the announcer walked over smugly and put a metal collar around my neck. I growled and tried to bite him. One of the soldiers grabbed my hair and pulled head back.

"This collar will negate all of his electrical attacks. He is now unable to harm you. Now, lets start the bidding at 10,000 poke." The crowd relaxed noticeably with the addition of the collar. This didn't calm my anger in the least. They were selling me like a toy! Is this what every pokemon that walks on this stage feels like? They will not make me a slave!

"AAAWWWWWW!!!" I roared, releasing the anger I had kept inside. Everyone in the room jumped from their seats at the volume and rage in the yell. All the guards razed their machine guns toward me. I stopped yelling and sat for about a minute. Everyone calmed thinking it was a scream of frustration. The quiet was broken by the chink and crack of metal breaking. With a twist of my wrists the cuffs began to fall. Before they were even of my wrists I turned and elbowed the man holding my hair in the groin. He crumpled. Everything flowed in slow motion. I stood, at what felt like normal speed, and punched the announcer in the nose. He flew across the room, still in slow motion. I turned back to the pair of thugs that were holding me. The one I had elbowed hadn't even reached his knees yet, that's how slow time was flowing around me. With a quick spin kick he was sent flying into his partner. They both flew across the room to the opposite side. I stood and time returned to normal. The handcuffs clattered to the floor.

From the outside you would have seen this. One second, I'm kneeling on the floor, the next there is a yellow blur, the next has people flying through the air and me standing tall, fire dancing in my eyes. The crowd took a moment to register what had happened then started screaming and ran for the door. I acted quickly. None of these people deserved to live. I still had the collar on my neck, but I also still had the guns in their holsters. There were approximately thirty people in the room, not counting the fifteen or so henchmen. Each one of my pistols held twenty-five shots. More then enough to take them all out. I pulled out the M9's and began firing into the crowd. For every shot a person fell. Eventually the thugs realized what was happening and began firing back. I took five seconds to change my aim and eliminate them, then I was back to the crowd. In under minute the room was clear of humans except for two. The announcer had survived his flight and was sniveling against the wall, nose bleeding heavily. I walked to him and crouched by his side. Leaning in I whispered in his ear. He tried to wriggle away from me, but I took hold of his jaw.

"Now, your going to take this collar off of me. If you don't I will torture you, then your family, then your friends. You will live threw it all until you undo the collar, then I will kill you slowly and painfully for not cooperating. But, if you take this collar off right now, you will never see me again and I won't kill you..." my voice trailed off. His eyes looked at me with fear and he reached up and undid the collar. When it hit the ground with a clang I finished my sentence. "slowly. Your death will be quick." I sent a shock through his body. His eyes brightened with surprise for a moment, then went dull with death. I stood and walked over to the last living human in the room.

Giovanni had kept his seat through the entire display of power and dominance. He smirked when I walked over to him.

"I suppose your going to kill me now too. After all, it is the only thing your good at. But what will you do when I'm dead? Silph will never take you back, they had planned to sell you anyway. The police will search for you after this. You will never find rest. You will become a wandering soul, causing misfortune to anyone stupid enough to help you. Is that what you want? I propose an alternative. You will work for me. I will cover everything you did here and take the brunt of Silph's anger. They won't be mad with the money I will give them, and you will be doing what you were made for. Killing." He said all this nonchalantly, like he wasn't surrounded by the corpses of his fellow man. Now it was my turn to grin. He took this as an agreement. His mistake.

I walked over to him and released a small volt of electricity, paralyzing him with his sadistic grin plastered on his face.

"Now here is my idea. You are going to sit here nice and quiet until the police arrive. They will assume you did this, while I get away with every pokemon you have locked up in a cage here. Good bye, and nice meeting you." He would be paralyzed for a few hours. I shocked the locks off the cages in the immediate area and walked to the hall way filled with cages. The surprised pokemon crawled out of their cages and followed me, not knowing what else to do. One long blast of electricity fried the locks on the rest of the cages. These pokemon were also confused and joined the herd following me out of the gym.

Now walking through town with seven hundred pokemon following you is going to draw some attention. Many trainers tried to catch some of the pokemon, but I shot down that idea quick, literally. I was headed for the route between Viridian and Pallet Town. There was more then enough space to let loose all these pokemon. On the way I released the pokemon being held in the market place. The group following me slowly grew to about eight hundred, I didn't take a accurate tally.

When we reached Route 1, the pokemon gave a jump for joy. They all began to run-off in different directions. One genetically altered pikachu stayed near me for second and looked at me in confusion. I smiled and told it to go and be free. It smiled and disappeared in the tall grass. I turned back towards Viridian and began the long walk to my waiting plane. At that moment my comm device buzzed slightly, followed by the voice of the Council.

"How was your mission? Did everything go as planned?" It droned out. I responded with false playfulness.

"You tried to sell me you bastards, then I had to go and kill everyone in that room." I could now hear sirens in the distance.

"Well that is just too bad. Return to base for your next mission." I smiled.

"Oh, I already know what my mission is. I'll see you _real_ soon." I took the comm device out of my ear and smashed it in a fist. I took out the spare and smashed it too, just to be safe.

When I reached the plane pilot questioned where the strike team was. I told him that they had a second mission to do here, but I was to return to base. He bought it and immediately took off. He had no idea he was flying his companies destruction home.

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Well I'm glad I got that done. Time to release the straps! And, yes, I really did strap myself to a chair and forced myself to write this chapter. It is amazing what can be accomplished with an chair and some duct tape. So, see you next time! Review!


	16. The Great Escape

First, uncountable thanks to Czar Lawrence III. He read and reviewed every chapter of my story. Yay him! This chapter is dedicated to him for being generally awesome. He also submitted an OC, which unfortunately I can't fit in this chapter, but will find a place sometime soon. Also thanks to Dragonfang20, for favoriting this story. Now, this is going to be the first official fight scene. I am not lying this time. So, on with the fic!

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"Everyone's bathroom problems in order?" I asked. Everyone nodded. "Alright, now if Scar will refrain from making Terra angry I will finish my story." Scar shrugged sheepishly while Terra glared at him. She muttered something to the effect of "creepy little pervert" and "worse then Ember." Oh, well.

The moment the plane had touched down I was out and running. I knew what I had to do, the weapons were all ready behind my wall. With a little bit of luck I wouldn't be stopped on the way to my room.

"Hey! Freak!"

I'm never that lucky, am I?

I stopped dead in my tracks. I recognized the voice. I turned slowly, uncertain if I wanted to waste time with this blundering idiot. When I looked up it was the same man from the hall. I realize now I gave no proper description of him. Well to start with take a Muk. Now shape it into a human shape, slip on jeans that must be at least a size to small, and a big orange handle bar mustache. Also bald I might add. He would have been hilarious in all honesty if I wasn't repulsed by his presence.

Grinning I said, "Mam, you must have miscounted the size on your jeans again. You need _45_ X's, not 35." His 'friends' behind him laughed despite themselves. He sneered.

"That's it you son of a bitch, I'm going to kill you! Hey! Joe! Bring that battle gear we made over here!" He growled. Joe, I presume, ran to find this 'battle gear.' What he brought back looked like a robot skeleton. You know like a stick figure. Big and ugly attached the exoskeleton to himself, arm to arm and leg to leg. Finally, what looked like a halo fit around his forehead. "Turn it on!" He shouted. Joe pushed something in the back and beams of light shot out from the halo and connected to the man's head. He grunted and closed his eyes for a moment then smiled. "This suit acts on your brain waves and responds just as fast, if not faster, then your natural muscle would, but uses the strength of machines instead of your natural muscle. It is several times more powerful then the normal man, even for a prototype. I find it ironic actually."

I narrowed my eyes, "Find what ironic?"

He laughed, "This was going to be integrated into the battle suit you wear now, but I'm going to use it to destroy you." Before I could blink he had launched himself across the fifteen feet between us. I was amazed by how fast he was, but knew I was faster. I toyed with him for a minute, getting used to his speed. For each punch he threw I would dodge or weave away. He even tried to kick me a couple of times, to only be side-stepped. Right jab, left hook, left back-hand, knee to the groin, right uppercut. The more I followed with my eyes, the slower he seemed to be going. I smiled when I was fully acclimated and jumped back. He grinned, thinking I was scared I guess.

"What's the matter sissy boy? Don't want to get hurt? Is it cause you don't have a mommy to kiss your boo-boos no more?" He mocked, his friends laughed along. I had originally planned to knock him unconscious, teach him a lesson, but he toyed with my past a second time. I don't take kindly to people making fun of my lack of parents. Raged boiled in my crystal eyes. The brute seemed to notice and stopped laughing. I blinked once and charged. Spinning in mid-air I threw out my leg for a roundhouse kick, Chuck Norris style. He brought his arm up just in time to block it. Still in the air, I used his arm for leverage to swing my other foot into his side. This he blocked too, but it was strong enough to send him skidding back a few feet.

I landed on my toes without a sound, looking at the ground. He stared at me.

"You may now be as strong as me with the help of that suit, but you will never reach my speed." I used agility to circle behind him. Now you may have pictured a blur suddenly appearing behind the man and it turning into me, but humans will never understand what pokemon go through while performing attacks. To me the world had slowed to a horrible crawl. All I had to do was walk calmly around the man, who will be called Jim since he never gave me a name, and mentally shut off agility. Jim, startled turned to face me. I promptly kicked him in the face. He flipped end over end and crashed into a pile of boxes. Using agility again I went to him and lifted him by the throat. He surprised me by kicking me in the stomach. When I staggered back he attempted to punch me upside the head. Jim would not get that pleasure.

I caught his hand mid swing. Without agility, I add proudly. Deciding to end the fruitless fight I pulled him close and reached around the back of his head, feeling for the steel that was his exoskeleton. Smiling, I grasped it. Jim gave me one horrified look before I pulled on the thing, and I pulled hard. The halo snapped from his head, the beams of light stretching for a moment then snapping and disappearing. His eyes went dull then, completely without the spark of life. But he stood, with the battle gear hanging behind him, sparking occasionally. I waited for a minute, then he started to drool.

The poor man had gone brain dead from the sudden disconnection. Time to put him out of his misery. I took a step back then ran full on at him. With a jump a slammed my knee into his face. He fell without so much as a grunt, blood flowing from his now broken nose. His friends stood in shock for a moment, then ran to him. I walked away, intent to finish what I came for. I ended up running from the hanger, not stopping until I was safe behind the locked door of my room. I changed into my street clothes, I was sick of wearing something created for mee by this hated company.

Without hesitation I strode to the hidden pocket in the wall and opened it. Everything was present. The handguns went in their holsters, ammo in my pockets, stun grenades in slots in the shotgun sling, the remote mines went along my legs. Ten on each leg, all the way down to the ankle from the hip, clipped to the material for easy access. The shotgun was to rest in his hands, ready for use.

I sat on the floor in the middle of his room, cross-legged, mentally preparing myself for the act I was about to commit. Mass murder. I cringed at the thought. I have hated killing every since... my mother was killed. I always cushioned the thought with the fact that none of these men were innocent, they had all done far worse then the crime I was about to commit.

I was still deep in meditation when there was a knock at my door. I was on my feet in a second.

"Hey, 02234. Council wants ya. Hurry." I sighed, took a deep breath and braced my self. It begins now.

I kicked the button on the wall to open my door. The man showed surprise on his face for a moment then it was blown away. One shot. I had to keep count on my shotgun shells, I had significantly less then pistol ammo. A person yelled from the hall. I turned to my left and fired. Two shots. I walked calmly down the hall, shooting anyone who attempted to oppose me. Three, four, five, six shots later I was in front of the Council's door. I pulled a flash bang from the sling and pulled the chord. I opened the door and tossed, turning away to avoid the being blinded. At the shouts of surprise I entered the room. Spraying electricity to look menacing I could see the councilmen for the first time. Most were holding their faces, trying to get the blindness from their eyes. I started on the outside and fired in with quick precision. Seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen shots later only one was left. The leader still shielded his face, though the flash should have worn off by now. I was angry still, using the anger as a shield from the disgust of killing.

"Show me your face! I want to know who sent me on horrible missions! I want to know who I am killing!" The man froze, as if in thought, then slowly began removing his hands from his face. I was still firing electricity, enough to let me see his face when he finally...

He was my Father.

I gasped and dropped the shotgun. He smiled, almost warmly, but I could feel the menace behind it. The cold steel that forced him to make his son kill. I stood with my head bowed, shaking with rage. The electricity had died with my shock.

"I'm sorry you had to find out this way, my son. I was truly only trying to make you stronger. But now you know and you must be eliminated." His smile turned to a frown. He was still speaking in monotone. "I suppose you want to know, know why I made you kill your mother?"

Terra gasped, pulling me from the depths of my memory. She had tears in her eyes when I looked at her. Raina too looked sad and moved closer to me, wrapping me in a warm hug. Terra joined, Scar, not really knowing what to do, just watched.

"I... I had no idea!" Terra cried. I rubbed her hair softly, trying to soothe her racking sobs.

"I'm sorry for what you had to go through, I am truly sorry. You may never know how sorry I am." Raina whispered. I rubbed her back, confused, excepting their sorrow. I did not want them to feel sorry for me, but I couldn't stop them now.

"It is OK, I... I just want to finish what I have started." They nodded quietly and moved to a respectful distance. Terra still had tears running down her cheeks, but nodded for me to continue. Taking a deep, calming breath I immersed myself back into the pool of my memories.

I glared at my father now. It was true, it was he who had ordered the mission that ended with me killing my own mother. Long ago I vowed that who ever was responsible would pay. I asked, I just had to know.

"Why?" I choked out the word like poisonous food. He smiled again.

"Don't be so angry. It really was to remove an unnecessary distraction. She wasn't even your real mother anyway." This information made me stagger.

Terra gasped again, but I ignored it.

"W-What?" I gasped, I had been winded by the impact of the truth, "What do you mean she wasn't my mother?" I was yelling now.

"And I'm not your father. You are a creation. An experiment, 02234. You are unnatural." This tipped me over the edge. The electricity began flying with renewed energy. Flying randomly, lighting the whole room. Where it hit the walls it scorched long gashes. "Now calm down, you-"

"Shut up! Don't tell me to calm down! You just tore the world from beneath my feet! I will DESTROY YOU!" All the electricity in the room gathered and condensed around my right hand. I tightened into a fist and lunged at my ex-father. In the second between kick-off and impact, his face had gone from happy to proud. His features still looked proud as I buried my fist through his stomach and out his back. Left was a round bleeding hole, yet his grin did not diminish. Angrily I twisted my arm and pulled it out violently. "Why do you smile? Scream damn it! I want the satisfaction of seeing you in pain!" I screamed in his face.

"You have become what I always wanted. The perfect killing machine." I yelled again and pulled a remote mine from pants. With a grunt and a twist it was buried in the hole in his stomach. I set it and gave him one final punch in the face. I turned to leave, confident he would die. I didn't even turn when I heard him chuckling behind me. I pulled the USP's from their holsters and opened the door to go back outside. I was not surprised in the least by the firing squad lined up in front of me.

"Ex. 02234," The leader to the side yelled, "you are ordered to surrender. Lay down your weapons and put your hands behind your head." I frowned. I began to lower my guns then froze in a half crouch. The firing squad tensed. "You have five seconds to comply. Five." Still down I whispered to them.

"My." They couldn't hear it, but probably saw my lips move, because they leaned foreward.

"Four." He continued counting.

"Name." I said this louder. They still leaned forward, but actually heard the word and shuffled in confusion.

"Three." Unfazed the leader continued.

"Is." This was at normal volume. No one struggled to hear it, and a few shuffled back.

"_Two_." He stressed the word as an obvious warning.

"LEO!" I shouted my name, spraying electricity. Now everyone of them took a step back.

"One." He gestured and they opened fire. The bullets, being medal, conducted electricity. I moved out of their way, but my electrical aura arched from bullet to bullet, ending on the firing squad's guns. A chain reaction had them all down on a second. I could hear clapping from the room behind me.

It was ignored. I ran down one of the hallways, following signs leading to exits, killing those who stood in my way. Occasionally I would prime a mine and throw it on a wall, not breaking stride.

By the time I had reached the exit my guns were out of ammo, I was out of stun grenades, all the mines were set and their remote was in my hand. The gun holster had been ditched long ago. I was about to step outside when a shout from behind me drew my attention. A man holding a rocket launcher was aimed at me and pulling the trigger.

I dodged easily, but the surprise allowed others to catch up.

These men carried machine guns.

"Shit!" I yelled as they started shooting. I ran, but bullets are damn fast. I was fifty feet away from the door, on the edge of the woods, when hit me. Just below the right shoulder blade. In shock I squeezed the detonator for the mines. I wasn't to close to get hurt, but I definitely wanted to be farther away. I ran threw the hills, stopping occasionally to listen for pursuit.

I opened my eyes and freed myself from my torturous mind. Terra was still sobbing, Raina was speechless, and Scar was... Scar.

"Then I ran into the city, found the park, and you found me, Terra. You know the rest from there." I pulled the pokeball from my pocket and stared at it. "Now you understand. She reminded me, of me. I'm going to talk to her tonight. Not now, I'm tired." I went to lay back on the bed, but Raina stopped me. She pulled me in for another hug. Slowly, regretfully, she released and smiled.

"Sleep well, Leo. You deserve it." I nodded and laid back. I was asleep in moments. Pray my mind stays blank tonight...

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This chapter was a lot of fun to write for me. Next chapter is going to be a quicky. Just a little conversation between are mystery she-chu (my phrase, I made that up), and Leo. So, 'till next time! Review!


	17. Midnight Gathering

I told myself I was going to write a chapter today, so here it is. Also, I edited chapter 11 to fit the story line here. You probably don't care and won't remember, but just in case I changed it. You know, today lost in the infinite hallways of my mind, I realized that everything that comes into this story is planned long, long before I sit in front of my computer. I caught myself structuring the introduction of a new character while organizing a complex conversation. I have decided that I want to be a mental neurologist after college. Thanks again to Czar for reading and reviewing. On with the fic!

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Sleep doesn't come easily me, and I laid awake waiting for the rest of my... mixed group to fall asleep. Satisfied, I sneaked outside carrying the pokeball of the mystery she-chu. I was planning to get some answers from her tonight. I headed for the nearby forest, dense with trees and brush, perfect for a discreet conversation.

I kept walking until the only light to be had was the bright full moon and small groups of glowing bug pokemon. I stood standing in the clearing I had located, I was thinking about the ironies of life. Isn't it strange that those you would never expect to meet find you no matter what? How about the fact that the only time you notice the moon is when it is full or new? Why is it that meetings of importance often have drastic scenery? Whether beautiful or frightening? Take this clearing for example.

It was surrounded by trees filled with Volbeat and Illumise, giving off faint glows in flashing patterns. The effect cast strange shadows across my currently human features, I assumed it made me look dark and imposing. In the direct center if the clearing was a stump approximately three feet off the ground. It somehow reflected moonlight, making the surrounding grass appear darker then it was. I released the girl onto the stump. She appeared sitting, confused as to where she was. When she saw me she relaxed. She saw the human that had protected her from a future of abuse and rape. Imagine her surprise when I changed back to myself. She fell off the stump in surprise while I struggled to contain laughter. It wasn't easy.

When she had collected herself and returned to sitting, excepting my non-human status, I broke the silence.

"Hi," I started, "do you have a name? Or am I going to have to address you as 'girl', which I think would be demoralizing." Little did I know I was about to be surprised.

"I don't have a name... " She looked down in embarrassment. I was expecting the lack of name, but you never really get used to what looks like a pokemon speaking fluent English. Now I know how Terra felt that day. I quickly gathered my composure.

"Well, would you like a name?" She nodded happily and I sat on the grass to think. Names should be things of importance I think. I looked at her, maybe pull a name from her appearance. I froze. She was... shapely. It was surprising that I had never noticed before. The fact the loose clothes were in tatters did not help my attempt at concentration. Most pokemon would not be affected by the sight of a naked form, but I'm half human. It was effecting me, a lot. I had fallen into an almost unconscious gaze watching her. She shifted uncomfortably and snapped her fingers, bringing me out of my mind.

"Well?" She asked.

I blinked, "Well what?"

She giggled, "What about a name for me?"

I blinked dumbly then shook my head, "Right... uh... Aditi!"

"What?" She looked confused.

"Aditi," I smiled, "it means 'free.' I thought you would appreciate the sentiment." She paused for a second, in thought, then smiled and lunged at me. I was caught off-guard and in a immense bear-hug. I sat still for a second then tentatively wrapped my arms around her. I must admit, I was kind of uncomfortable. She was lying on top of me, her breasts were being pressed against my chest. I let her stay for another second then gently lifted her off me and placed her back on the stump. She squeaked in surprise, but didn't argue. When we sat facing each other again I tried to find out more about her.

"So where did you come from? How is it that you are... you?" She frowned.

"My father was a gifted trainer. His favorite pokemon was a raichu. The first pokemon he had officially caught. One day, from what I was told, they became more then friends. Supposedly it was the year that Silph had marketed the first translator. My mother and father confessed their feelings and I was the product. So, where did you come from?" She asked. I had unconsciously growled at the mention of Silph, but Aditi didn't seem to notice. When she asked where I came from I tensed.

"I'm not comfortably discussing my past with people I have just met. Lets suffice with my parents weren't exactly supportive." I growled. I was speaking of Silph in general, but I couldn't help the image of my father holding a cattle prod flashing in my mind's eye. She frowned and nodded. We watched each other for a moment, then she looked down and sighed. When she looked back up tears were in her eyes.

"You don't trust me." She sounded hurt. I floundered for a response.

"I'm a little surprised to meet someone like me." I stammered.

She cried more. "You didn't deny it."

"Um," I mumbled, "I honestly don't see why you trust me."

She looked at me seriously, "You proved to me that you cared for me. You saved me from some awful men for me, not asking anything in return." She frowned, "You never gave me your name."

"Leo." I said, happy for a subject change, "My name is Leo."

She smiled now, "Well Leo, what can I do to prove that I can be trusted?" Her face turned serious again. I could smell something in the air. "What do can I do for you?" She said the last part seductively. The scent in the air got stronger. It was a confusing mix of lilac and roses. I stared at Aditi crawled off the stump and prowled towards me. The scent was clouding my thoughts now, pushing me to my primal side. This side was more animal, driven by the need for aggregation, domination, and sex. Why would this scent be pushing me to be more aggressive?

Aditi was directly in front of me now, rubbing my chest and coaxing me to lie on my back. From this position it was all to easy to take advantage of the condition of her clothes. My rational side took hold for a moment, despite the scent now even stronger, and I looked away in embarrassment. I felt her hand slide along my cheek, pulling me to face her. Her eyes were gentle amber in the dark.

"There is no need to be embarrassed." She whispered, "This is a just reward for saving me." She tried to pull my face to hers. I felt uncomfortable, and, using my strength, I gentle stopped her and stood us both up. Standing face to face I looked into her eyes, seeking answers to my questions. The scent still floated to my nose, but less powerful. In the moonlight her eyes glowed golden. I stared into them and collected myself before speaking.

"This is not what I want. This may be what you want, but I strongly doubt that. I'm not attracted to you that way." I said this assuming what she wanted. Fresh tears came down her cheeks. The scent disappeared instantly, it was staggering how much mental control I had back.

"You think I'm ugly?" She sobbed, "You don't think I'm pretty enough to be your mate. All I wanted to do was reward you for being a hero to me. I think I love you, Leo." I was struck by this statement. This is what she wanted from me? Love? I didn't know how to react to this.

"Look, Aditi, it's not that your not beautiful. In fact, you are, but I'm just not physically attracted to you. I couldn't be your mate. In a way I see you as a sister. A sister of species." She ignored me and sat back on the stump. When I tried to comfort her she turned away from. We stood there, stewing in the awkward silence for minutes. I was wallowing in regret when Mew saw it fit to send me a curve ball of the night.

"Cool!" We both turned to see a dark figure holding a shiny, crystal-like rock.

"Who the hell are you?" I shouted. The figure dropped the rock and walked over to us. I still couldn't see his face, so I sparked up and lit the clearing. I gasped at what I saw.

In front of me was the fourth half-breed I have met. He was about six feet tall, and grinning like an idiot. I was surprised by the hurt lingering behind that smile. His naked body was pitch black, blacker then the night, making definition impossible. I could see however that his head was spiky, it kinda resembled hair. His blood red eyes were filled with an inner pain that I could only guess at. His hands were floating freely at shoulder height. I only now realized that he had no arms at all. It shocked me and made him laugh.

"Your funny, dijo dijo dijo. My name is XiD." He laughed, "I came over cause girly there was sad. I would have been quieter but there was this cool rock! Hey... where did it go?" I turned to Aditi and shrugged. We were both confused as to who the hell this was. He smiled again. "Can't believe you'd turn down a screw from your girlfriend, but I'd be glad to take his place lady! Dijo dijo dijo." He laughed again. That was one of the strangest laughs I have ever heard. He actually said 'dijo' with each laugh. It was kinda distracting.

"So... what the fuck?" XiD ignored me and went over to Aditi, who was still crying.

"Are you OK? Do want me to kick his ass for you?" He said sweetly. Aditi giggled a little.

"Hey!" I shouted, "I'd like to see you try!" I tried to punch him in the head, but my hand passed through and sent me spinning into the ground.

"Dijo dijo dijo, I'm half haunter, good luck with that, dijo dijo dijo." I got up, dusted myself off, and turned to him.

"What do mean half?" I asked. He frowned at me, the first thing other then a hurt-filled smile I've seen on his face.

"I'm half human, like you if I'm guessing correctly." He replaced his smile, "But that's no way to introduce yourself. Whats yours and the pretty lady's name?" Aditi giggled at the compliment.

I blinked, "Leo, and this Aditi."

"Dijo dijo dijo, well I'll be seeing you Leo. Good bye Aditi. We will meet again, us freaks gotta stick together." With that his eyes glowed and he disappeared in a flash. Teleport. I exhaled slowly. Why do I keep meeting nut bags? I looked at Aditi.

"Well, lets get back to the hotel. It should be quiet enough for you not to be put in the pokeball, but we still have to be careful. When we get back, you can borrow some of Terra's clothes, if not just underwear." Aditi blushed and nodded. We walked slowly, thinking over our conversation.

Arriving at the hotel without incident, Aditi promptly borrowed some panties from Terra. Her bras were to small. She also borrowed a shirt and shorts, but it was to dark to see what they were. I climbed onto my bed. I heard a whimper and looked back to see Aditi standing looking around uncomfortably. I realized her problem in a moment. Terra and Scar had the only other bed, and Raina was curled on the floor in full ninetails shape. I couldn't see Ember, but she was somewhere. Sighing I looked back at Aditi. She was staring at my bed and me hopefully.

"Fine," I sighed, "you can sleep with me, but no funny business. Keep away from my crotch." She nodded and curled up against my chest. As I fell asleep I swear I heard something. Oh well, I'll remember in the morning.

Dijo dijo dijo.

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That was fun! Meet Czar's OC, isn't he interesting? I like his laugh especially. The only problem is I have no idea how to pronounce his name... I need help there Czar! Nothing else really special. So, bye! Review!


	18. Good Morning

Hey guys! What's up with you? Alright new chapter, but first some thanks. Thanks to Czar for giving my story honorable mention, your the best, and thanks to mr sonic 101 for reviewing, favoriting, and setting my story to alert. Your awesome! I also edited chapter 17, getting rid of grammatical errors. So, with nothing left to say, on with the fic!

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**Leo**

I awoke to screaming. Not the most pleasant way to find yourself in the world of the conscious. And on top of that, I'm not really a morning person.

I raised my head just enough to see Terra beating Scar over the head with a shoe. I would have laughed if I wasn't pissed for being woken up.

"What the hell is wrong with?" I yelled. Terra stopped beating Scar to glare at me. I noticed that everyone, including Aditi, were cowering in the corner. I was to shocked to fully register that Raina was in a human shape. Terra was just that scary.

"This weirdo was _caressing_ me while I was sleeping! No one touches me that way and gets away with it." She yelled, then continued dealing punishment. I noticed now that it was one of my boots. I looked down to see the wiggling toes of my right foot. Huh.

When Scar was sufficiently beaten Terra turned to me. "So, who's the tramp and why was she sleeping in your bed with you?" The question was asked casually enough, but she was swinging my boot in slow circles, ready to use it if necessary. I sighed and looked at Aditi. Her fur was bristling with rage, sparks bouncing between the ends of hair.

"Who are you calling a tramp? Your the one who fell asleep with a kid who fondled you." Terra turned on her slowly. She put the boot down and calmly walked over to her bag. I stared at her curiously as I pulled my boot on and laced it. I groaned when she pulled a seven inch high heel from her bag. What the hell was that for?

"I was expecting to enter a few contests on this little journey of ours, but beating the living shit out of a tramp whore is a justifiable purpose I suppose." I was now hiding in the corner with Raina and Ember. These chicks were just terrifying. I have never seen fire come from a human just from the heat of anger. I think I pissed myself a little bit. Only now did I notice Raina's human form. She had long fire red hair and tanned skin. I would have continued my examination, but one of the battlers threw a bible against the wall above our heads. Now that isn't very christian.

Deciding to avoid unnecessary casualties, I slowly motioned everyone towards the window, even dragging Scar along. The two had started shouting at each other and throwing around death threats. I needed to get everyone out of the room before weapons were pulled, and that meant the window. I don't care if we were on the fifth floor, those crazy bitches were blocking the door. I motioned for Raina to carry Scar down, Ember followed. Just as I was about go with them, the demons noticed me, one leg over the window sill I froze.

"Where the hell do you think your going?" They asked in unison. I may not have before, but I definitely pissed myself there. They ran at me, trying to pull me back inside for what was most likely torture. Frantic, I attempted to jump out the window. Even at fifty feet, I could take the landing. But mid-air Terra grabbed my shirt. I twisted around and tore free, but now I was headed down facing backwards with no chance of turning back around. Frantically I sent a message to Raina, but she couldn't help me now.

"_Her name's Aditi! Her name's Aditi!" _I felt her pull back from shock.

"_What?" _She asked. Then I hit the ground and blacked out. Again. Gotta stop letting this happen.

**Raina**

I saw him hit and cringed. That looked like it hurt a lot. I ran over to him to find him unconscious. He would have a nasty bruise across his back, but other then that he would be fine.

"Wow, that looks painful. Dijo dijo dijo." I jumped up and looked around. Right behind me was a black figure, but when I had jumped at his voice I somehow ended up behind him. He turned and showed me a big grin. His eyes were closed, and he looked happy. He opened his eyes and I gasped inaudibly. His blood red eyes were filled with pain. So much pain I felt like crying from it. I stuttered with my response.

"Who- who are you?" He grinned wider and bowed low.

"XiD, my lady. Said like she'd, as in 'She'd kill me if I died.' Friend of Leo there. He looks like he is gonna be out for a while, tell him I said hi! Aditi too! Dijo dijo dijo." His eyes glowed purple for a moment, then he was gone. Teleport. At that moment Terra and, I assume Aditi, ran outside. I gave them a glare and they looked sheepish for a moment. I walked up to Aditi and looked her in the eye. Who was this girl? Could this be Aditi, the daughter I had lost to the scientists beside Leo? Maybe, but right now they made Leo nearly kill himself.

"What the hell were you doing? This isn't funny. What if Leo landed on his head and broke his neck? Why were you two fighting anyway? And you, who are you?" I pointed at the supposed Aditi.

She flushed red before speaking. "I don't really know, but Leo named me Aditi. He said it meant 'free.' It was meant to honor the fact that he saved me from slavery." Terra stomped over to Leo and pulled out a pokeball. Hitting the button in the center, a red beam shot out and pulled Leo into the ball. She growled and marched toward the pokemon center. Sighing I gestured for Aditi to follow.

"So, Aditi," I said, "why were you in Leo's bed?" Aditi glanced nervously at Terra and sighed in relief when she saw that she was far ahead of us.

"The other beds were full, I can't change forms like you, and Leo was nice enough to offer me his bed. Don't worry, he set specific boundaries between us." I visibly relaxed. If Leo had done _that_ with his possible sister... ? I shuddered at the thought. We kept walking, keeping silent. Then I remembered the strange figure who said he was friends with Leo.

"One of your friends stopped by, said his name was XiD. Said to say hi." Aditi tensed then nodded.

"Ya, Leo took me out to the woods last night to talk. I was sad, and XiD appeared. He comforted me then left when Leo tried to punch him in the head. XiD is apparently half-haunter. Leo didn't succeed in punching him." She giggled at the memory. I blinked in surprise. From what Leo had told me, which admittedly wasn't much, if there was a half-breed it was almost guaranteed it was from Silph. But, XiD hadn't seemed violent, just hurt. Mysteries to be solved later, we had reached the pokemon center and Terra was walking out holding Leo's pokeball.

"Come on Raina, Scar, Tramp, we are going to the lab to get my pokedex and trainer's license. I'll let Leo out in a minute, preferably when we reach a dark alley." Aditi tensed, probably from being called a tramp. Oh well, at least Leo is OK now.

**Leo**

Have you ever been in a pokeball? No? Let me describe it.

It's cramped, you are forced into the fetal position, unable to move, floating forever around in a black abyss. Little known fact, all pokeballs are intimately linked. This means that every other pokemon ever that was caught in a pokeball is here in the black abyss. They all can talk, mostly complain about being cramped, and it gets very noisy for there being no walls for sound to bounce off of. A million voices, all talking at the same time really gets to you eventually. When I felt something pulling me from hopeless condition, I nearly cried with relief. I appeared in a dark alley in front of Terra and everyone else. Scar had a big black eye, but nothing serious. I looked at Terra, she was still holding the pokeball out. Standing, I turned to her.

"Hey, can I see that?" She handed over the pokeball. I pulled Aditi's out of my pocket. She flinched when she saw it, and I understood. I grunted and smashed the two balls together. They gave off a few sparks, but nothing spectacular. They broke quickly, into little pieces. Terra was staring at me furious.

"What the hell? There is no way in hell I'm gonna carry you without a pokeball." She said.

"You don't understand. That is the worst experience I have ever been in. I have never been in a pokeball conscious, but that is a torture far worse then death. I now understand how trainer's pokemon go completely bonkers." I turned to Aditi, "I won't put you through that kind of torture either. People will just have to get used to your appearance, or assume your wearing a costume." She nodded. "Now, don't we have a lab to get to?" Terra sighed, defeated, and walked in the general direction of the lab. I changed into a human form and followed. Raina came up beside me as we walked. I could now get a proper inspection of her human form.

As I said she had long red hair and tanned skin. Her eyes were narrowed, like a predators, and her nose was short and narrow. Her ears were slightly pointed and her blind eyes were gray, pupil-less. I was slightly disturbing, but fitting. She was about to my neck. If I looked to my right, I would look right over her head. She looked up at me, strange with her gray eyes.

"Your friend wanted me to say hi for you." I tilted my head quizzically and looked down at her.

"And who would that be?"

"XiD." I jumped at the name. Laughing the ghost man appeared next to me.

"Dijo dijo dijo. Well you sure recover fast, Leo. With powers like that you must be murder in bed. Dijo dijo dijo." I glared at him.

"What the hell XiD, you can't just pop out of no where!" I yelled, "What if someone sees you."

"Dijo dijo dijo," He laughed, "No one can see me but you and her." His hand gestured at Raina. "It just looks like your talking to yourself to everyone else, you nut-job. Dijo dijo dijo." The hurt flashed in his eyes again. I frowned, I had to get the reason out of him eventually. I opened my mind and immediately fell into a mental conversation.

"_-don't think he is... fine you win the bet Raina. Dijo dijo dijo."_ He even laughed in his head.

"_Yep, that's 500 poke you owe me." Raina replied._

"_So what did I miss? Were you two placing bets on how soon I would figure out you were talking telepathically? That's just not ethical."_ I joked. Raina smiled next to me.

"_Well it's not our fault. You missed introductions between us. That's about it. So, Raina, when are going to tell him? Dijo dijo dijo."_ XiD laughed. Raina tensed.

"_Now, I suppose, since you just told him."_ She scowled.

"_Tell me what?"_ I asked.

"_Leo, your name isn't Leo."_ I gasped, _"Leo means 'lion', but it is a shortened for your true name. You full name is Bellrauthien, or Raunien for casual use. It means 'strong as a lion.' Well, any comments?"_ I stuttered in my steps a little. What?

"_How do you know? And I like Leo better." _Raina and XiD laughed. I didn't find this funny. Raina quieted quickly, but XiD kept "dijo-ing."

"_Well, you had to find out eventually. Leo, that awful man that claimed to be your father, was no such thing. And the mother you knew was not your mother."_ I tripped. I would have fallen, but XiD, not laughing, had caught me and kept me walking normally.

"_What do you mean they weren't my parents! How do you know? _I should kill you!" I paused, my voice had carried physically, _"Why didn't you tell me sooner."_

She just shook her head. _"Later, Raunien, now is not the time or place. We are here." _I looked up at the lab. I looked at XiD. He smiled.

"Well," He said aloud, "have fun Raunien, don't get laid without me. Dijo dijo dijo." He disappeared with Teleport. I growled.

"My name," I glared at Raina, "is Leo." I stormed into the lab. What the hell Raina?!

* * *

It's out in the open now! Ow, my back hurts. Sympathy pain for one of my good friends, VampireoftheNet, he was diagnosed with Scoliosis. A moment of silence... thank you. Alright, well I had a good long speech, but I forgot so, you know the drill. See you next time! Review! That's a command, not a request.


	19. The Wacky Professor

Well, it's that time again. Time to put another chapter in ink. Thanks to DarkIncubisKing and Czar Lawrence III for reviewing. Hey, I put a poll up that kinda will effect how these stories are set up, so go vote on it! Nothing left to say so, on with the fic!

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I nearly ran into Terra when I entered the lab. She had stopped suddenly and was looking around. I looked around too and my dropped in shock. The lab was in total disorder. Interns were running and screaming, some on fire, machines were shooting electricity, papers were scattered across the ground, mysterious fluids flowed between our feet. The definition of 'total disorder' has a picture of this scene next to it.

In the center of the madness was a clean lab table. A pokemon was sitting on it being examined by, who I assume was, the professor. For some reason he was wearing a pair of Groucho Marx novelty glasses and had a cigar in his mouth. He was talking calmly to a gibble when we walked up, avoiding the mayhem as we went.

"... now don't stress that trainer of yours, he has an anger problem. And don't step on anything on your way out, you don't know what it is." He spoke softly to the small pokemon. The gibble nodded and headed out the door, dodging flaming interns and puddles of questionable liquid. The professor turned to us and scowled. "Who the hell are you?" His gruff greeting was a stark contrast to the compassion he showed his previous patient.

"Are you the professor?" Terra asked.

He grinned. "Correct! I must be, nobody else wants to be." He ripped off the Groucho Marx glasses. "My name is Professor Redwood, but my friends call me Professor Redwood. My enemies call me, but not often." He held out his hand for Terra to shake. She grabbed it, I heard a buzz, and she jumped back with a shout. Hand buzzer. "That will teach you to shake someone's hand without checking for germ's first!" He shouted. Ember started laughing hysterically. The professor turned to her. "A,h this must be my patient. Just in time too, I thought I was losing my patience." He reached into his lab coat and pulled out a rubber fearow and handed it to me. "Here, hold this." He put Ember on the examination table. I stared at the rubber fearow for a solid minute.

"Why?" I asked.

"It was in my way!" He responded, turning back to Ember, who was now freaking out at being poked and prodded. Shrugging I hit Scar over the head with the rubber fearow and tossed it to the bedlam.

"Hey!" He protested. "What was that for?"

"It was in my way!" I yelled mimicking the professor. The professor had finished his 'examination' and was talking to Terra.

"Your pokemon is completely healthy, all I need is a match." He grinned.

"I know," Terra said, "I didn't come to get treatment for Ember, and why do you need a match?"

"He wiggled the cigar in front of Terra's face. "Forgot to light this thing before I came in." Terra pointed at one of the fires burning in the lab. "Thank you!" He ran over and started puffing. I turned to Terra.

"Well," I said, "he is completely bonkers. Can we leave now?" Terra shook her head, she looked over to Professor Redwood, then huddled us together. "I still need a license and pokedex. And I want to know what happened to Professor Pine, you said he was the professor here." I shrugged.

"I make mistakes too." Professor Redwood coughed to get our attention. We all turned to him, he was standing next to Scar, actually leaning on him, arm over his shoulders like they were good buddies. "What?"

"Professor Pine is dead. Upon his death the lab became what it is now. I haven't even tried to restore order, I don't want to die." He was speaking seriously, total professional. He looked around sadly, then turned to Terra. "Here is your pokedex and license. If the police ask, Pine gave it to you." He whispering now, all professionalism lost. Raina stared at him.

"How the hell did you get in our huddle without us noticing? Wait, second thought. You killed Pine, didn't you." She frowned, everyone turned to stare at her. Professor Redwood grinned evilly.

"Of course, the bastard was screwing my wife! Wait, maybe I was screwing his wife..." He began to wander aimlessly, but generally away from us. Terra stared at her equipment.

"Well," She said, "Let's go!" She pointed to the door. Somewhere from the second story we heard shouting. We looked up and I was scared mentally. Professor Redwood was bare naked doing pull-ups from the second story railing. Lets suffice with saying that Redwood isn't exactly in shape. He crashed to floor. He landed in a cloud of dust. "We are not staying any longer!" Terra shouted over the noise. Behind her, Professor Redwood had jumped up. I shielded my eyes, but he was somehow fully clothed. What the fuck is wrong with this man?

"Good bye!" He yelled as we ran out of the lab. "Such a nice family of rattata."

It was a physical relief to be out of that god damned hell hole. It was worse then anything I have seen, and I have seen lots of bad things! I turned to Terra.

"Can we please leave this place? If anything else happens, I swear to Arceus, I will kill everyone in this damn town." Everyone took a step back. "And it is raining again!" It was true, the skies had opened again to release an unforgiving torrent.

Terra braved my anger. "Sure, we just need to stop at the pokemart. I need a town map and pokeballs."

I grimaced, "If we have to go to a place full of people, something will happen, and the largest mass murder in the history of this town will take place." I took a step away from the group. I spoke just loud enough to be heard. "Gods, if you have any sympathy for this town and its people, do not let me go to that pokemart." To answer my prayers a lightning bolt shot down from the sky. It somewhere on the edge of town. We heard a scream, and with a curse I was off running.

I am far faster then anyone else in our group and reached the unfortunate sight of a crumpled body. I walked over to it and flipped it over. The person was covered all in black, but on the center of their chest was a big, burnt, red R. Team Rocket. Next to the person was a bag, also a little burnt, but it looked relatively unharmed. I opened it to find a town map, about thirty pokeballs, and several potions of varying type and strength. I looked up at the sky, where a hole in the clouds had opened. In the sunlight a blue figure was spinning happily. I grinned and shouted into the air.

"I owe you own!" I grinned when Mew did another flip.

"_I'll remember that."_ Mew disappeared and the holed sealed into impenetrable black. Just at that moment the rest of my group ran through the trees. They were frozen in shock at the remains. I frowned.

"Rocket grunt." I said simply, "He had it coming to him. On the good side," I held up the bag. "we don't have to go to the pokemart!" I grinned. Everyone around me frowned.

Aditi spoke up. "We can't take that, it is stealing. Even if we need exactly those things." I shook my head.

"I would rather give an arm or a leg then go into another building full of people. This is my prayer. We are taking this, or I am taking this and will meet you at the next town." I turned on my heel and headed towards a gap in the trees showing a street out of town. I heard every one following me after a moments pause. I stopped on the street and grinned at them, despite the rain still falling heavily.

Terra stared at me strangely but I dismissed it. Handing her the map I asked, "So, which town is first?"

She looked up from the map and started walking, without saying a word. Everyone followed with quick looks at me. Raina ushered me forward. They were all acting strange. Must be the encounter with the wacky professor back there.

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I like the Professor, but I don't think he will come back again, maybe. He is meant to be the crazy man that is actually qualified for what he is doing, but is so messed up in the head that no one would believe him if he told them. Remember that I am still accepting OC's, but no guarentee that they will be main characters, maybe just random people the group meets. I really need a good enemy for them to have to fight, and a gym leader for the first gym. I want them to made by you so that this story has more imagination then with my mind alone. And also, remember my poll. So, see you next time! Review!


	20. The Power of Desire

Sorry for the delay. I have been distracted by a story I was writing for a competition. Now it's done and I'm getting back on track. Thanks to Dragonfang20 Czar Lawrence III for reviewing, as always, and to... a few people that I can't remember off the top of my head for favoring my story. So, on with the fic!

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**Leo**

We had stopped to camp under another wayward pine. The rain could be heard violently beating the branches of the tree. We huddled around the small fire, our only protection from the damp cold waiting just beyond the needles of our hovel. Raina was whittling a piece of wood, don't ask how, and it was starting to resemble a raichu. I watched as she slowly dragged the blade of her knife across the surface of the wood, making a pile of long curls. She periodically pushed them into the fire.

Turning from her, I looked at Aditi. She was sitting eyes closed, knees held to her chest. She was distanced from everyone else, at least three feet away from all of us. As I watched her she opened her eyes and looked at me. Blushing, she quickly looked away. I decided not to bother and looked around the rest of our group. Scar was staring at Aditi, but he wasn't just looking at her, he was _staring _at her, and it unsettled me. I shrugged it off and looked for Terra.

I jumped slightly when I found her staring at me over the flames, in much the same way Scar watched Aditi. Now I was even more uncomfortable, because under the strange stare was the same look she had given me when I had decided to take the bag of supplies. I think it was distrust, or maybe disbelief, either way it wasn't nice to know that the stare was settled on you. We continued to watch each other for awhile when Ember came swinging down from the branches above us and tackled me.

Caught off guard I gave a shout of protest before being knocked on my back.

"Ember, what the hell? Are you trying to scare me to death?" Ember only laughed at my protests.

"Tonight, Leo, I will have you. Consensually." She laughed at me. I glanced around, seeking help. Raina was sitting open mouthed, dropping her carving into the fire, Terra looked angry, Scar was still staring at Aditi, and Aditi herself was smiling strangely. Before any of us could react there was a blinding light.

"Behold! I am the brilliant XiD, all may bow before me." I rubbed my eyes and looked at the bastard in the center of our camp.

"Hey, brilliant dumb ass, you're standing on our fire." XiD looked down, thought for a second, then began dancing around and hopping on his burnt feet. Raina quickly grabbed him and pulled him to the ground.

"Terra, would you mind trying to find a Burn Heal in that bag, there has to be one somewhere." She said calmly. I took the surprising moment to throw Ember at Scar, whose face she promptly clamped to. He finally stopped staring at Aditi to pry the little monkey off of him. I ignored them to help Raina hold down the squirming XiD.

"It'll be over a lot quicker if you stop wiggling." Terra was saying. I stared at her, confused as to why she wasn't freaking out at the sight of yet another half-breed. She noticed me staring and sighed. "Leo after being in this group for so long I've learned to expect anything." Her voice was missing the bubbly energy it usually had. I looked at XiD who was smiling again.

"Now I get it." He said, "You didn't screw Aditi cause of this chick. Dijo dijo dijo, you need higher standards." Terra and I promptly hit him on the head. Terra turned to me, rage plain on her face.

"You did what, with Aditi?" She all but growled. I smiled sheepishly. I looked at Aditi, hoping for some support, but she had that smile again and just shrugged. I noticed Scar staring at her again, and I realized it made me angry. Shaking it of I turned back Terra. I jumped back at the glaring face that was inches from my nose now. I gasped, scrambled back and got pinned against a tree. Stuck, trapped between Terra and a hard place.

"Dijo dijo dijo, she practically forced herself on him. He probably would've done it, but I guess you passed through his mind or something. I just thought he was gay, dijo dijo dijo." Terra's faced softened for a moment.

"Really Leo? Did thoughts of me... AAHHH!!!" Terra never got to finish because Ember had jumped onto her shoulders and was pulling her hair.

"Hell no! He's mine Terra!" She was dragging Terra back, but that was Ember for you. Out of the corner of my eye I saw XiD and Raina talking just before they disappeared in a small flash of light. Now where were they going? Just then, though, I noticed Scar crawling towards Aditi, who was shrinking away. My rage boiled again, and this time I acted on it. I grabbed Scar by the back of his neck and stood him up.

"The hell do you think you're doing, Scar? Can't you see she's uncomfortable with you so close? The hell is wrong with you." I looked down at Aditi. She was smiling obviously thankful for my intervention. I looked back at Scar, and in his eyes I saw an all too familiar look.

"I want her, Leo. I don't know what came over me, but I wanted her so bad that I couldn't control myself." I looked down and was disgusted. Scar wasn't even trying to hide his arousal. I threw him to the ground and turned to Aditi. I knelt beside her, smiling.

"Are you alright? He didn't hurt you did he?" She shook her head and smiled again. She uncurled her legs and straitened her back. I stiffened and heard Scar gasp behind me. The fire light accentuated her curves, making them look all the more inviting. I began to reach for her, not realizing it was much the way Scar had, but she didn't shrink away. Instead she held out her hand, inviting me.

Just before we made contact I was bowled over by something heavy. I looked up and found Scar straddling my stomach, hand held back for a punch. The fire made his scar glow an unearthly white. The effect made him look crazed and dangerous.

"I told you Leo, I want her. She will be mine." He brought his fist down fast. I caught it and pushed it aside.

"You dumb ass, I don't want her; now get the fuck off me." I said, trying to put some sense in him.

"Liar!" He brought his other fist down without warning, slamming it into my chest. I was winded for a second, but bucked the raged kid off of me.

"Fine, you want to fight over her, I will." I said, vaguely aware of Terra and Ember still fighting on the other side of the fire. Ignoring it I lunged at Scar, grabbing him around the waist and knocking him to the ground. I punched him in the stomach, stopping his struggling for a moment. He couldn't move, but he could speak.

"You don't understand. I love her, Leo." Tears started to run from his eyes. I looked back at Aditi. She was smiling strangely. I took it as acceptance of Scar's confession. In rage I turned back to Scar and punched him in the nose. I felt blind rage at his words, and her acceptance. What did this mean?

"No! I love her, and I'll kill you for that right." I punched for his face again, intending to crush his skull. He rolled his head to the side, narrowly avoiding my fist. When my punch hit the earth it made a small crater. I lifted my fist to punch again, but was stilled by a loud gasp.

I looked up at Raina and XiD staring at me. I hesitated. They would understand my feelings and support me. I gave Scar a feral snarl when he tried to move.

"I'll kill you for Aditi if it's necessary." My fist began to fall. I would not miss this time.

**Terra**

I growled and threw Ember over my shoulders. How dare she?! No one pulls my hair like that.

"Ember, I'm going to beat you for that!"She asked for it. She growled indignantly at me.

"Leo's mine, if you try to take him from me, I _will_ beat you into submission." She lunged at me. I side stepped and let her body fly by. This is about Leo, I thought.

"I knew you were possessive, but you can't claim people Ember." She jumped again. I grabbed her out of the air and pinned her against the tree. Ember struggled in vain against my grip.

"No!" She yelled, "Your trying to take him from me, you whore. I love him, and he _will_ be mine!" The thought angered me. Ember continued to struggle before shooting fire at me. Yelping in surprise, I pulled back to avoid the flames. Luckily, they flew harmlessly to the ground. I turned back to Ember, who was now clinging to the tree, glaring at me.

"I am _not_ a whore." I kicked at the Ember, but she jumped off and clung to my shirt. The weight threw me off balance and I fell to the floor. Off to the side I could see Scar and Leo struggling against each other, and standing behind them, smiling, was Aditi. I didn't have much longer to think about it before Ember scratched my cheek. The sting caused me to throw Ember to the ground in shock. She growled something about Leo again. I didn't hear the words, but the message was clear. The anger in me spiked again.

When I thought of Leo many thoughts filled my mind I felt other feelings. Passion, lust care, and... love? But over-shadowing them all was anger. Anger at the fact that Ember thought she could claim him. Leo was mine!

I threw Ember against the ground again, and then tried to grab her neck. I would teach her to claim my love. I stopped when heard a very loud gasp. I looked up to find a very surprised Raina. Next to her was the strange ghostly man. Seeing them made me stop... what was I doing? I looked down at Ember and gasped. Why was I choking her? I let her up and she glared at me. Understandable considering.

I looked over and saw Leo poised above Scar, ready to strike. I gasped and started running to him. I couldn't let him do what he was doing. He didn't need more blood on his hands.

**Raina**

**(Just before Raina and XiD teleport)**

"So," XiD said, "should I ask the obvious?" I looked at him, seeing the ever present hurt in his eyes.

"Not here. Take us somewhere somewhere private." XiD nodded. I stared as Terra tackled Leo against a tree, then watched as Ember dragged her away. A second later I was sitting on a house-sized boulder in the middle of a lake. Next to me was XiD, smiling again. I listened to him for a moment, then turned to listen to the water gently ripple against the rocks.

"Well, XiD, you may ask the obvious." I didn't think it was possible, but he smiled wider.

"When are you going to tell him you're his mother? And, while we're on the subject, when are you going to tell him we've met before?" I smiled. He frowned.

"How is that the same at all?" He stayed serious, still unable to hide the hurt in his eyes.

"You're confessing, but you're changing the subject now." I sighed.

"When appropriate, and if necessary. Does it really matter that I have known you for nearly three thousand years? I mean, I've you known you this long and I've never been told what's been hurting you so horribly. By the way, even with years of practice it is evident." He smiled.

"Dijo dijo dijo, and I thought all that practice had paid off. Though I'll probably never tell anyone the reason for my distress, thinking on it just brings long buried memories to the surface. It's not something I like to remember." We sat quietly, listening to the gentle ebb and flow of water.

"XiD, would you be Leo's godfather." XiD gasped, probably doubting what he had heard.

"Why? I mean he has you, when you tell him of course." I tried to express the reason subtly, but it is not so easy.

"I've seen an.... unfortunate, set of circumstances unfolding in the future. I just want to know that someone will be there for him if I'm gone. He's still a child in many ways." We were left in silence again, left only with the sound of the water and my own steady breathing. I heard XiD exhale slowly.

"Fine. We should probably head back now. We don't want anyone to get suspicious." He laid a hand on my shoulder. Once again I found my surroundings suddenly changed.

The first thing I noticed was the smell. It floated heavily in the air, a mixture of musk and heat. I could almost feel myself getting aroused by its pure potency. Ignoring it, I expanded my awareness. The first thing I saw was Aditi, standing and smiling, which turned to an expression shock when she saw XiD and I. Next I saw Leo, poised over Scar, his fist cocked back. I gasped. Leo turned to me for a moment, then back to Scar. He raised his fist higher. Next I saw Terra, knocking Leo off of Scar probably saving his life. What was going on?

**Leo**

Something knocked me off of my prey. I continued to roll, ending on top of this creature. What would dare keep me from my kill? I growled at the creature under me, barring my fangs and holding my claws above its head, which was cover by its arms. I growled again and the arms moved. I gasped and recoiled. Terra was under me.

My thoughts returned to me in a snap. Everything I had done came back in one horrible moment. I looked at Scar, who was shaking his head, looking dazed and confused. I looked back down at Terra. Her eyes were terrified. I lowered my head for moment. Slowly, I wrapped my arms around Terra's back, under her arms. I lifted her in an embrace, holding her tight.

"I'm so sorry." I whispered before releasing her to stand on her own. Ember was laying on the ground rubbing her temples. I picked her up and put her in my arms. Walking over to Scar I sighed and helped him up. His nose was off center, very broken. I looked apologetically at him, but he just looked confused. I turned to XiD and Raina who had been standing quietly, observing rather than interfering.

"What happened?" I asked, my voice hoarse. Probably from growling. Scar shook his head.

"All I remember was that I got a hard on from watching Aditi, then... I don't know. It goes blank." Ember had gone to sleep in my arms, and now she was snoring quietly.

"Her." Raina pointed at Aditi, "She is in heat. Normally the scent would only bother pokemon, but her human part makes it affect the others as well." I nodded. It explained a lot of things. The scent that nearly consumed me the other night, her advances, and what happened just now. It could all be explained by her being in heat.

"Dijo dijo dijo," XiD laughed, "It gradually came over you guys here, but it was strong as hell when we came in. The pretty lady there needs something to satisfy her, dijo dijo dijo." I didn't feel like laughing. I turned to Aditi, who was standing there being embarrassed.

"I didn't want to tell you, it is kind of a personal problem." She blushed. I sighed.

"Whatever, can we just go to sleep now?" I gave Ember to Scar and turned to Terra, "I'm sorry." I hugged her again, before stamping out the fire. In the glow of the flickering flames I looked at XiD. "You stayin' the night?" He shrugged.

"I might as well just stick with you guys, has to be more interesting than being a loner." He walked over to Terra's bag and pulled out a pokeball. He captured himself, then released himself. "Mistress, dijo dijo dijo." He bowed to Terra. Nodding, I laid down to sleep. Everyone followed suit. After a moment I heard some scuffling then felt something press against my back.

I looked over my shoulder, expecting to see Aditi. When I found it was Terra I rolled over and hugged her. She wriggled closer. I had no objection. That night I had one of the most restful nights of sleep I have ever had.

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That's that. This was a little longer to make up for the delay of posting. Right now, I got nothing. So, see you next time! Review!


	21. Floodline City

Ok, here is another chapter for you! Now, everyone cheer because we have broken 1000 hits! YEAH! But, I just found out I'm not aloud to recognize reviewers in the chapter, something about adding chapter length. So, I can't say THANKS TO CZAR AND DRAGONFANG FOR REVIEWING, or THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO FAVOURED THIS STORY (there were a lot). Yeah, I can't say that. Stars mean a scene change. On with the fic!

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**Leo**

We started early the next morning. It wasn't raining. Terra was punching buttons on her new pokedex, and at that moment a thought struck me.

"Hey, Scar." I said, "Weren't you going to get a pokedex too?" He jumped up in surprise. He started dancing around and flapping his arms.

"Oh my Arceus! I completely forgot in all of the excitement!" He kept ranting, and I looked around, bored with the spectacle. Raina was shaking her head and looking at Scar's pants. Strange. I looked back and noticed what she was looking at. A large square object was leaving an impression in his pocket every time Scar jumped in the air.

I calmly walked over to Scar and grabbed his shoulders, stopping the incessant bouncing. I reached into his pocket and pulled out three things. A pokedex, a trainer's license, and a piece of paper. I gave the pokedex and license to Scar, and opened the paper. I read its contents aloud.

"_Surprise! I thought you might forget this, but I'm a quick thinker! Just remember to pickle your cucumbers, and cucumber your pickles._

_Proffesor Redwood" _I stared at it little while longer, more than a little confused. Terra interrupted my thoughts.

"Hey! It says you're only level sixteen." I looked at her. How the hell am I only level sixteen? I could take down a ground type with an electrical attack!

"Well," I said, thinking up a reasonable excuse, "It must be the human genes. It is reading more my age than my level." She only grunted, rapidly pressing buttons again.

"What town is next?" Raina asked. Just as I opened my mouth to speak, Terra cut me off with a flow of information.

"Next we have Floodline City, where it rains so hard that the streets are constantly flooded." Everyone groaned, but Terra continued, "The Gym Leader is Lorenzo Vincenzo Roquerra Scudachalupe Broncaleone. He specializes in water and ice types, and holds the Iceberg Badge."

"How do you know this?" I asked. She simply held up the pokedex in response. She then pointed it at Ember. It chimed out with a robotic voice.

"Chimchar, the Monkey Pokemon. Chimchar easily climbs the sheerest of walls and lives on mountain tops. When it sleeps, its flames go out. Level five. Attacks are Scratch, Growl, and Ember." Ember sighed at the low stats, but Terra patted her on the back.

"It's ok, it makes sense considering I never trained you." Ember was still depressed though. "How 'bout this. The next pokemon we meet, you battle all by yourself." She perked up at this. She was determined prove herself.

At that moment all the pokemon in the area, including myself, froze. We had our ears perked in the air. Scar looked around confused.

"What-" I shushed him. There. I heard it again, louder. A small ringing, like the delicate chime of a bell. I could hear it growing louder, getting closer. Now Terra was also tensed, preparing for the worst. The chiming became unbearably loud before stopping abruptly. I looked around the clearing, but saw nothing. Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye I saw a blur, something moving, fast.

I dashed at it, grabbing its long, cylindrical body and hurling it into the clearing. We all stood surprised at the beldum floating in our presence.

The chime rose up again, and the beldum charged with take down, aiming for Scar. Before it made contact Terra shouted.

"Ember, use ember!" Small sparks of fire surrounded the beldum, and it stopped, turning to the new threat. It charged again, now aiming for Ember. "Dodge!" Terra shouted. Ember jumped, but was early and landed on the back of the beldum as it soared underneath her. She now clung to it, riding it like a tauros at a rodeo. "Ember!" Terra shouted again, meaning the attack. The beldum was engulfed in flames, and was brought down by its natural weakness.

Ember jumped off as it struck the ground. A pokeball flew by her head, as it struck the pokemon it was sucked inside. The ball gave a couple of futile shakes before finally coming to a rest. We all held our breath, then Terra jumped in the air shouting.

"Yes, I caught a beldum!" She picked up the ball and released the now frightened pokemon. "So, what's your name?" The beldum shrunk away, scared of Terra's exuberance. Scar walked over calmly, running his hand down its back, calming it slightly.

"Won't you tell us your name, little one?" I was surprised by the calmness of his voice, and even more surprised when the beldum spoke. It was a buzzing, like heavy machinery, just much quieter.

"My... my name is... I don't have one..." The voice was obviously feminine somehow. Scar raised his hand again, and the beldum shrunk away. Aditi walked forward.

"What would you like to be called?" The beldum just hovered behind Scar, scared again. We sat for minutes, contemplating and tossing around random names.

"Danielle?"

"No."

"Cassandra?"

"No."

"Sarah?"

"No."

Suddenly Scar yelled, "JAMES BOND!" I smacked him over the head.

"THAT"S NOT A GIRLS NAME!"

"NATALIE STRAGANOVICH!" Raina shouted.

"WHY ARE WE YELLING?" Ember asked.

"I WANT TO SHOUT TOO!" Aditi yelled.

"I KNOW IT'S KINDA ADDICTIVE!" I yelled back.

"EVERYBODY SHUT UP!" Terra screamed.

"NOOOO!" We responded. She quickly smacked us all over the head. "OUUCCHHH!" We turned to the beldum at the sound of bells again. She was shaking where she floated, probably laughing, but with each shake the clear bell note rang out. I looked at Terra.

"Bella?" She shook her head.

"No," she said, "Twilight ruined that name for me. Bell." Bell shook happily at her new name, but I just looked at Terra.

"What's Twilight?" She shook her head and started walking.

"We have to get moving if we're going to get to Floodline City." I reluctantly followed, and I looked at Bell, floating just above her right shoulder. A new ally? Just awesome. You just knew she was hiding something. It's always the quiet ones...

We reached the town in a few hours. It had started to rain again, harder then usual. We ran into the Pokemon Center and fell on the, already wet floor. As we were sprawled on the ground I had time to think about the trip here.

It was actually very boring. Lots of training for Ember and Bell. They were both level ten now. We quickly learned that the only attack Bell knew was take down. Oh well.

We walked up to Nurse Joy, Raina and I in human forms. She was so surprised by Aditi that she actually fell down. She sat on the ground for a moment then stood and composed herself.

"Welcome to the Floodline. May I take your pokemon to be healed?" Terra nodded and handed her Ember while Bell floated behind her.

"So," Terra asked, "is the gym open today?" Nurse Joy smiled knowingly.

"Yes, it is open everyday, but good luck getting a match." Terra pressed the subject, but she got no more information. Nurse Joy just told her to go find out for herself. So we did.

It isn't fun running through a heavy downpour, but it was relatively dry in the gym. The receptionist looked bored. Without even looking up he pointed towards his right.

"Just follow the snoring." I didn't even bother asking this time, partly because I was a pikachu again. We walked quietly, and eventually the sound of quiet snoring could be heard. It grew steadily louder until we reached the battlefield.

Above us the roof was open, or rather it had no roof and was open to the sky, letting in thousands of gallons of water, which soaked the field. The field was built like an ocean, glaciers floated around it randomly. We could still hear the snoring but I couldn't find the source. Suddenly Terra shouted and pointed across the large room.

"There's a bed over there! Hey lazy Gym Leader! Wake up! You got a challenge!" The snoring stopped abruptly. A figure sat up in the bed. As we got closer we could see a small fridge set up next to the bed, from which the man was pulling random foods.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm Lorenzo," he paused to yawn, "Gym Leader," He yawned. "and holder of the Glacier Badge, yada yada." He walked out onto the opposite side of the field where we could see him more clearly. First, he was tall, very tall, like over seven feet tell. But he wasn't lanky, or fat for that matter, he had a balance between the two. He was wearing a flashy blue tuxedo and top hat. A bold statement in this age. "The rules are three on three, no subs." He yawned again. "Do you agree?" Terra nodded. "Very well, REFFEREE!" A ref came out of a side door.

He raised his flags. "The challenger may choose first." Terra nodded and called for Ember to walk out, which I opposed, but Terra ignored me. Lorenzo nodded and threw out a pokeball.

"Go, Otto!" A seel appeared in the water, staring at Ember determinedly. "Ladies first."

Terra growled. "Ember, scratch!" Ember jumped from iceberg to iceberg, finally jumping above Otto.

"Otto, icy wind." Otto looked up at Ember and let loose a chilling wind. Ember was blown straight up.

"Ember, use ember!" Ember used the force behind her attack to direct her flight and land on another iceberg. Without skipping a beat she fired another ember at Otto. Most of the attack fizzled in the rain, and what did make contact wasn't very powerful.

"Otto," The lazy Gym leader yawned once more. "surf." Otto dove under water for a moment, then rose high into the air on a mighty wave. It encompassed the entire field, leaving Ember no where to run. Terra looked down sadly as she washed up at her feet. She returned her and sent out her second pokeball. Guess I'm her secret weapon.

"Go, Bell!' Bell appeared in her light chiming fashion. "Take down!" Terra yelled, seizing opportunity. Bell flew forward incredibly fast, credit to her training. Before Otto could move she slammed him head on, the bell chiming again. Otto was sent flying at Lorenzo, who calmly returned him and sent out his second.

"Go, Felicia." Now a dewgong appeared floating in the water. "Felicia, headbutt." Felicia began to charge.

"Meet it head on, take down!" The two pokemon came together with a horrible smack. They both began to sink into the water. "Take down, get out of the water!" Bell suddenly burst into the air in a large splash, largely fine.

"Rest, Felicia." We heard a quiet 'Dew', then nothing.

"Bell, take down! Just keep attacking it." Bell dove into the water chiming. We all waited patiently, but neither pokemon came up. Then Lorenzo yawned louder then normal.

"Icy wind." The water began to glow white, frost forming on the surface. Then in a spray of water and ice, Bell flew out and landed on an iceberg, out cold. Not even waiting for the ref, Terra recalled Bell and practically threw me onto the ice now covering the field.

"Get this done quick, Leo. Thunderbolt!" I stood over a hole in the ice and released a powerful jolt into the water. The room lit up with my electricity, casting everything in frightening, dark shadows. After thirty seconds of constant current, I cut-off the flow. I looked calmly at Lorenzo as Felicia floated to the surface. He recalled her and pulled out a third pokeball.

"This," He yawned yet again. "is my strongest pokemon. Good luck." He threw the ball onto the field. "Go, Iceburg." Another dewgong landed on the sheet of ice, but this one was monstrous compared to the other. He roared, scaring me slightly. "Iceburg, ice beam." The blast was so fast I barely got out of the way. The jagged beam of freezing temperatures left frost on my fur.

"Thunderbolt, Leo!" I shot electricity at the dewgong, hoping for a one-hit KO. I was shocked when it took the full force of the attack without flinching.

"Hydro cannon." I saw the glowing ball form, I heard the call to move, but I felt my pride tarnished by his stand-off at my attack. I was determined to stand my ground. Suddenly the pent up energy released in an explosive blast, shaking the air around me. It hit me with the force of a freight train going a thousand miles an hour, but I refused to move. Unfortunately, the force of it made me lose my concentration, and when the light cleared, a powerful half-breed stood where a small pikachu had been.

"Um, it's a long story." Terra quickly covered. Lorenzo merely shrugged, not really caring who he faced. "Fine, Leo, quick attack." I crouched low then sped off at the dewgong. He was frozen from the power it took to use hydro cannon. He slid a few feet when I hit him, but was otherwise unharmed.

"Iron tail." With a quick spin, I was slammed with the glowing appendage and sent skidding much farther then I had moved Iceburg. "Now, ice beam again, and keep it up." He yawned. The beams of freezing temperatures flashed around me as I ran from cover to cover. I wasn't going to last much longer at this rate.

"Leo, run at it with agility, avoid the ice beams." I began running, side-stepping the ice beams as they came when I was ten feet away I heard my death call.

After another loud yawn the man commanded. "Surf." The ice broke as the water surged to meet the call. I tried to back pedal, but slipped on ice. I was swept away when the wave hit. I heard Terra yelling something, but ignored it and focused. A section of the ice floor broke underneath me, about ten feet long and two feet wide. Now what have I learned about surfing?

I rode the wave like an Islander, but couldn't see Iceburg rising behind me. He burst threw the wall of water, tail glowing with an iron tail. Terra saw him though.

"Grab him, Leo. Then jump into the center of the arena." I did as told. I grabbed the dewgong around the chest, ignoring its struggles, and jumped into the pouring rain. Above me dark clouds blocked out the sun. I think I know where Terra's going with this.

"Thunder!" I called down the might of the heavens and slammed it down onto our bodies. When we landed I threw the unconscious pokemon at his trainer. He was returned mid-air.

"The challenger is victorious." The ref called, and left. Lorenzo nodded then went back to his bed. Without a word he collapsed on it, not even bothering to remove his top hat.

"Hey, what about my badge?" Terra asked, happy despite his attitude. He held up a small glittering object.

He yawned. "Come and get it." After collecting her badge, Terra ran over to me and rapped her arms around my neck.

"Thank you, Leo." She pulled back for a moment and I looked into her eyes. We stared for moments before I pulled her in closer. A spark shot threw my body and into hers when our lips met. She moaned into the kiss, but I pulled away, staring sheepishly at our companions. Raina rolled her eyes, Scar smiled, and Aditi looked angry.

"Can we leave now?" She asked, storming out. I laughed and followed, never releasing Terra's waist.

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That's Chapter 21. I put a little romance in there for ya. Next chapter will almost undoubtedly be the long awaited lemon. So all you perverts get a reason to be happy. Yay! So, see you next time! Review!


	22. The Sparks of Passion

This is the lemon chapter. It will be somewhere in the middle, after some random stuffs, followed by some plot progression. It will be marked off in bold text, for those of you who do not care for lemons. I decided I need to thank my reviewers and such, so I don't care what fanfics says about it. Thanks to shiny eevee4, Dragonfang24, ShinjiHiroku, Czar Lawrence III, The Him, FrostDeman, and Foxyjosh for reviewing. And thanks to Alomo and ChaotixContraler for favoring me and my story. Stars mean a scene change. So, with nothing left to say, on with the fic!

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**Leo**

We held a small celebration at a nearby hotel. We had gotten three rooms due to the girls paranoia of Scar. We were all in the larger of the three. This one was gladly clean, thanks to Terra's prize money, an we were dancing to some upbeat music late into the night. Somewhere in the back of my mind I noted XiD was absent, but ignored it as his way.

Throughout our fun I rarely left Terra's side, and only did when absolutely necessary. I was surprised by my new found affection for her, but I didn't want to loose the feeling I had. In the labs, the scientists subjected me to drugs to see how I would react. One, specifically ecstasy, had made me feel light-headed, giddy, confused, happy, and bouncy at the same time. It was an amazing sensation and I found this to be more addictive.

As the night became morning we began to drift apart. Scar went to his own room. Aditi, Raina, and the pokemon decided to take another room. I watched as they left, waving my good-nights, and turned back to stare into Terra's eyes, only now noticing their deep ruby color. I smiled as they sparkled happily. I walked forward, moving into her arms and leaning my face down to hers.

I closed my eyes as our lips connected for the second time, noticing the spark had not diminished in the least. I felt her try to gasp at the sensation, but I held her close and she did not fight it. We stood like that for a long time, not wanting to end the intimacy of the moment, but we are mammals and as such require a trivial thing called air.

We broke apart gasping, still locked in each others gaze. I paused to catch my breath, then spoke.

"Why? Why me, what could you gain by having me?" She smiled and responded with another kiss. The spark jumped through us again and she shivered slightly.

"I don't know," she said when we separated again, "It is something about you. Honest, caring, merciful, yet at the same time cunning, powerful, and ruthless. You are an odd combination of traits that begs my attention." I laughed, "What?"

"Nothing," I smiled, "I just noticed my appearance was not part of your reasoning." She smiled connivingly.

"Well, now that you mention it," She began to scratch the fur behind my ears, "I love your soft fur, even though I will never admit that in public, your ears are just so cute, you have the most beautiful crystal blue eyes I have ever seen, and your tail... well, in honesty, I have always wanted to pet it." She moved one hand down and stroked the fur, from base to tip. I nearly purred from the sensation, but contained myself. She stopped suddenly."So, why me?" I looked down into the flames of passion that were the eyes of Terra.

"What description can due true justice to someone so beautiful? Can we suffice in saying that we have mutual attraction?" She giggled and playfully shoved me.

"Come on! Just one thing about me that stands out." I was tempted to, but refrained, deciding to get all I could from this.

"Convince me to tell you." I smirked. She looked thoughtful for a moment then smiled. In one smooth motion she had pulled the T-shirt I was wearing over my head. With it on the floor she pushed me again, this time not so playfully. I staggered and fell back, but luckily hit the bed. She pounced on me and began scratching the fur on my chest and stomach. Now I couldn't resist, and began to purr loudly, the rumbling noise carrying through my chest. I pouted when Terra stopped rubbing.

"Whats one thing?" I smiled.

"You make the best pancakes EVER!" We laughed, then she looked at me seriously.

"What do you like about me?" I stared at her for a moment, then concocted my evil plan.

"Your going to have to do more convincing then that." I grinned and she smirked seductively, then began inching her way down my stomach to the button of my pants.

*******The sex scene that is supposed to be her has been removed due to a reorganization of 's content policy. Just assume sex happened and you won't have missed anything.***** **

"Terra!" I gave a few more weak thrusts, emptying myself, and collapsed to Terra's side. I turned to face her when I could move again. "Why did you hold me in? What if you get pregnant?" She turned to me, a blissful smile on her lips.

"I wanted it so bad, and I think your children would be a blessing." I watched her for a moment, examining the rise and fall of her breasts as she caught her breath. Her eyes were closed, but they snapped open as I stared, and she rolled to look at me.

She wiggled to rest her head on my chest. "I love you, Leo." I smiled.

"I love you too, Terra." I began to laugh. She looked at me like I was crazy.

"Whats so funny?" I looked into her ruby eyes.

"I was a virgin too." I laughed again at her shocked face.

"How the hell can you be THAT good and be a virgin?" I laughed again and fell asleep, my dreams filled with Terra.

I woke up early the next morning. I shifted slightly, not wanting to waken my new lover. I got dressed quietly and went to find breakfast. Down in the lobby of the hotel they had a breakfast buffet for guests. I piled two plates with waffles, donuts, and fruit. I carried both, and two cups of orange juice, up to our room and entered, trying not to make a sound. When I entered the bedroom I found Terra already awake and dressed.

She was sitting on the edge of the bed, watching TV. I sat down next to her, noticing she didn't acknowledge my entry. I placed the food behind us and turned to the TV as well. It was a news report, and in a video above the reporter's left shoulder were the remains of a large building.

"...death tolls continue to climb in this unfortunate explosion." She was saying, "The research facility was under government surveillance after a similar explosion some months ago. Silph claimed that the latter was caused by a forgetful employee, but officials were not convinced when guns were found at the scene." I growled at Silph's name, but calmed when Terra put her hand on my shoulder. "The more recent destruction resulted in the complete demolition of the whole building and all of its employees." I turned off the TV by throwing the remote through the screen. I stood, shaking with rage.

"You know what this means, don't you?" I asked Terra. She didn't respond, just took a step back from my anger. "They are still creating more of..." I gestured to myself. "Us! And I'm not the only one to rebel! There will be more, and not many of them will have the connection with humans I did. If it weren't for my mother then I would sooner kill you rather than love you." Terra took a step towards me now, lacing her hands under my arms and pulling me into her embrace.

I felt my anger fade as I stayed in the embrace of my love. She looked up at me with sadness in her eyes.

"But you're not like that. You're you, and that's who I love. I don't hate who you could have been; I am too filled with the love of what you've become. Calm down, every cloud has a silver lining. I'm sure that if they're making more half-breeds, they realized the wrong they were doing and escaped, just as you did." She nuzzled into my chest. I took a deep breath, taking in the scent of her hair, and let the rest of my anger flood out of me.

"Come on. Let's wake the others and get moving." She nodded and followed me out of the room, ignoring the sizzling of the TV.

When we were all gathered we moved down to the lobby. I noticed XiD was back, standing just behind Aditi.

"Where ya been, XiD, you missed the party last night." A shadow fell over his face for a moment, but was out shined by his dazzling, though still pained, smile.

"Where do you think I've been, dijo dijo dijo." He made suggestive motions with his hips. "I suspect the same of you, judging by how close you and Terra are now, dijo dijo dijo." I blushed slightly, but laughed it off, ignoring Aditi's glare.

"Well, whatever. It's your business, and we won't pry." He looked relieved. I turned to Terra who was once again burying her nose in her pokedex. "Where to next, oh fountain of knowledge?" She ignored my joking tone and answered matter-o-factually again.

"Next is Barrier Town. The Gym Leader is Jessica Moulderes, a psychic expert and self-proclaimed super nerd. Rumors say she has advanced psychic abilities and has read every book in existence. Hm, sounds like fun to me." I thought about this. A psychic expert? This would be fun.

"Why is it called Barrier Town?" Aditi asked. Terra pushed buttons for a second then looked up.

"Jessica is powerful enough that, with the help of her pokemon, she can put a barrier around the entire town, sheltering it from the rain completely." Ember jumped in the air then ran for the door.

"What are we waiting for? An actually DRY town? Let's go!" We ran after her, paling in comparison to her enthusiasm. Maybe she forgot she was probably going to be a part fighting-type against psychics. Oh well, she'll figure it out.

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Finally! This took way longer than it should have! The lemon took especially long, and my fingers hurt now from writing so fast after a burst of inspiration. Well, I'll try to update soon, but I'm planning on rewriting Chapter 2, so it may be later than it should be. I'd like to take a moment and draw attention to another story of mine, Dani California. I wrote it for ANGPH, but here for you! So, check it out and I'll see you next time! Review!


	23. Nera and Troy Giagro

Here is Chapter 23. Sorry for the delay, I rewrote Chapter 2, so you can go read that if you wants to. Uh, more new characters this chapter, thanks to shiny eevee4 and xshadowhazex. I swear I'm going to forget some of them eventually. By the way, shiny eevee has a little business for OC's, so if you need one, he is the one to get in touch with. Thanks to Dragonfang20 and Czar Lawrence for reviewing, and on with the fic!

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**Leo**

"Why didn't you tell me that we had thirty miles to go before we reached Barrier town?" Ember complained, I laughed and kept walking through the rain. Everyone was trudging along, stepping in mud and slipping in puddles. Terra was snuggled closely to my side, under a procreated wing.

Recently I have decided to call my changed forms and created objects procreations. The definition of procreating is to beget or bring forth, so it fits with what I do. Hence, Terra was under my procreated wing.

XiD was laughing his ass off at our attempts to avoid the chill and wet, "I am so lucky I can just phase through the rain. Pour mortals, so land held, dijo dijo dijo." I glared at him but kept walking. The rain didn't really bother me, but everyone else was miserable. Aditi looked angrier than most, she kept glaring at Terra. Bell was floating over my shoulder, unable to even feel the rain.

Scar was listening to a small hand-held radio, blaring the current news.

"... the recent explosion at the laboratory has been proven as a chemical accident. Nothing has been found missing, and so far there have been no missing persons filed, or bodies discovered. It appears this is, as they say, an accident." Loud rustling suddenly came from a tree to our right. We all turned, Scar turning to quickly and slipping in the mud. XiD laughed, a lot. A pair of figures walked out of the trees and walked up to us. It was a girl and guy, about 17 and 21. The younger girl was happy and bouncing, but her friend was looking even more unhappy then us. Did I mention they were half pokemon?

The girl had a human face, but her skin was green. From under her hair were two long antenna, dripping from the rain. On her back were two enormous beautifly wings. Her eyes were big and round, black and bug-like. Her friend was large and gray. He wasn't wearing a shirt, and I could see layered plates on his chest and stomach. Strangely, he was overweight, a beer-gut sticking out fairly far. Centered on his forehead was a spiraled horn.

"Oh, come on! How many of us are there?" I yelled, loosing my patience for unexpected events, "What are you? Judging by your obvious rockness, I'm going to say some rock-type. The horn suggests rhyhorn," I said to the older male, "and for you it's easy. The bug wings and antenna are definitely from a beautifly." She jumped up and down, strangely pleased.

"Actually, I'm also part dustox. And this big lug is half rhydon and rampardos. I'm Nera Giagro, and this is Troy, we're cousins. Hey, do you have any honey?" She suddenly noticed the still playing radio in Scar's hand. She grabbed it and put it to her ear. "Hey look Troy! It's talking about us." The radio was still talking about the lab explosion.

"No," said Scar, "That was some lab accident." Nera looked at him for a second, then started laughing.

"Nope, Troy and I blew it up. We did it cause we were told to, but our controllers were killed in the gun fight after wards." I noticed Troy staring at Bell, but ignored it. I growled at Nera. "So, what pokemon are you from?"

I pointed at Raina and Aditi, "Full ninetails, and half pikachu. I'm half pikachu, and half human. What do you mean you blew it up? Why would you do that?" Nera shrugged.

"Our controllers told us to, but now there dead so were free!"

"What do you mean, controllers?" I asked.

She looked at me confused, "We belonged to Team Rocket. They made us do stuffs. Do you have any honey?" I just shook my head. I looked around and realized Troy was gone, Bell too.

"Hey, were the hell is your cousin?" Then I saw them.

Troy was holding Bell and had paused with his mouth over her middle. Bell's eye was closed, probably unconscious. Troy glared at me for a moment then continued to slowly bite down. On instinct I charged with electricity and charged him. I took him by surprise, knocking him off his feet, and Bell out of his hands. I caught her, going to Terra.

"Return her," I told Terra, "and get away from here. This is going to get messy. XiD, stay and help me." XiD turned serious.

"Right."

I turned back to Troy who was scratching his stomach. He had a bored frown on his face. Nera was laughing.

"Why did ya ruin my meal?" Troy rumbled.

"Cause," I growled, "you need to lay off the heavy metals." His bored frown turned into a straight snarl.

"No one talks about my weight!" He charged me, but I side-stepped, tripping him. He went flying landing a few feet past me on his face. I turned back to Nera.

"He likes to eat metal," She shrugged, "and he doesn't like it when people talk about his weight. Your gonna die now." She smiled happily again.

All my senses were lit up. I heard Troy rise to his feet. I felt when he began to run. I saw him when I turned to face him. I smelt the rage as he came closer. I practically tasted the sweat in the air as I threw him over my head. He landed past me and in front of Nera, who was still smiling.

"Your strong," she said, "Not just anyone can throw someone as heavy as Troy. You must be the experiment we were lookin' for!" I tensed. Why were they looking for me?

"Yay," she continued, "Giovanni has a high stake on your head. What you did in that auction really made him mad. That's actually why our old controllers went to that lab. But now we can kill you and take you in." I frowned.

"I thought you said you were free. Why would you wanna kill me?" XiD was twitching next to me, sensing the rising tension.

"True, but Giovanni IS offering a LOT of money. So we will kill you." I watched as her body changed. Her beautifly wings and antenna glowed, shifting to the shape of a dustox.

I growled, on edge from her threat. Her body continued to change until it was closely resembling a dsutox, though more colorful. When she finished she fired a testing psybeam at XiD and I. XiD rolled right and I rolled left.

Right into the path of Troy. He no longer had a horn, but now had a large blue dome over his skull, ringed in white spikes. His feet scratched the ground once, and he charged, quicker this time. I jumped back and side-to-side, avoiding him each time he bucked his head at me. After his first attack his head began to glow. I kept dodging, but this time he brushed my chest. I didn't think of it until My vision began to swim and I nearly passed out.

"Wha... what did you do to me?" I mumbled. Troy stood up straight and grinned. I would have attacked him, but there three of him and couldn't chose which one to hit.

"Zen headbutt. Nasty little move, isn't it? You won't be able to think clearly for a few hours. I'm surprised you can talk." He turned to where Nera and XiD fighting. "Hey, he can't do anything. I hit-" I hit him with a thunderbolt. He picked himself off the ground and turned to glare at me. I was still wobbly but could focus some what. "How did you do that?" He asked, shaking off my attack,

"I'm stronger than I look." I growled. "Now come on!" I ran at him, but jumped to the side five feet before I reached him. Spinning with the jump, I stuck out my leg and kicked him in the head. Not expecting the sudden attack, Tony flew on contact, skidding several feet.

"Your spending a lot of time on the ground, Tony," I taunted, "is gravity finally winning the battle?" Troy roared and fired a hyper beam. I ducked down and dashed forward, running under the massive beam of energy. Troy froze from the energy needed for the hyper. I charged electricity into my fist, ready to end this fight, and drove it into Troy's chin. He lifted several feet before crumpling to the ground.

Nera, who had been beating XiD rather horribly, gasped and ran to her cousin's side. She glared up at me, but said nothing. Using confusion, she lifted the male and floated off, headed for the trees. At the edge of the forest she turned back.

"You will suffer for this. I don't even know your name, isn't that funny? No matter, you will suffer all the harder." I met her hostile glare with one of my own.

"Leo. My name is Leo." She nodded.

"Then today I sign your will, Leo. Your death is assured." She wandered into the woods, disappearing behind dense foliage.

I sighed, relaxing my tensed muscles and turned to the battered XiD. He had multiple cuts, bleeding red against his black skin.

"Come on, buddy. Let's go find the others." He nodded numbly and followed me. He looked like shit. I'm sure I didn't look any better.

"Dijo dijo dijo, you look like shit." He laughed.

Well, told ya.

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There it is! I almost didn't make my Saturday deadline, and once again, sorry for not posting this sooner. I'm tired... so thanks for reading! Review!


	24. Histories are Past, Pain is Present

Here is Chapter 24. The gang is making its way to Shield Town, along the way... things happen, I am still writing this off the top of my head. Thanks to Czar and Dragonfang20 for reviewing. Just wanna say that I still have the story Dani California up, I have literally 16 hits on it, which is a little sad, but of those who did read it, they only had good things to say. This chapter is going to include slight adult themes, not a full on lemon, but some sexual mention. It won't be too heavy, but I will still put a warning. So, on with the story.

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**Leo**

The rain was still falling hard. We had all stopped under a wayward pine, huddled around a small fire. XiD was sleeping against the tree. I noticed he was twitching and watched him for a moment, examining his movements. Every fifteen seconds he would twitch his head to the right, every five he would drum his fingers against his thigh, and every six his eyes would move under his eyelids. After about a minute of this his eyes popped open, looking around nervously. I stood up and walked to sit next to him.

Leaning in, I whispered to him. "Is something wrong, XiD? You've been acting strange lately. Is there anything you need to talk about?" XiD looked at me nervously, the pain in his eyes flashing intensely for a moment followed by deep relief.

"Can we walk, Leo?" He asked, gesturing outside toward the rain. I nodded and stood up.

"All this rain is making nature call, anyone else need to go?" XiD nodded and stood. No one else moved, so I walked out into the rain, followed by XiD.

We walked several minutes, putting distance between us and our camp. When I felt it was safe I stopped and turned to XiD. He took another couple of steps and turned back to me.

"What is it, XiD?" His eyes held a vast pain again, bursting through with every movement he made. His eyes glanced around nervously, his feet shuffled, and he was wringing his hands. He kept working his jaw, chewing imaginary food, even the movement of his hair said he needed to express himself. When he finally calmed down he was much happier looking, though still pained.

"You know, I've been waiting four hundred years for someone to ask me that question." He said, suddenly he laughed, "Dijo dijo dijo, you know, I'm crying with joy right now, but this damned rain is making it difficult for you to see, dijo dijo dijo." Together we laughed, until he heaved a sigh, like it bore the weight of the world. Dropping his head, we slipped back to the darker conversation. "That fight, with Nera, brought back some pretty bad memories. I was having a nightmare, about them, when you came over." He looked up at me, and I could see the steady river of pain running down his cheeks, flowing freely after being pent up behind a massive dam of doubt and regret.

**XiD**

"What you don't know," I told Leo, "is that half-breeds have been around for a lot longer than anyone knows. There have always been humans who have been in greater tune with their pokemon than others. Some actually fall in love and mate with them, thus we are born. My family was murdered, before my eyes. I was fourteen, and not very powerful. A large group of humans, maybe twenty, attacked our home. We, my family and I, were dragged outside onto our lawn and tied to stakes like we were animals. At first my mother, a gengar, fought, but was brought down when they killed my father. Overpowered by grief she gave up, the humans dragged her before me and forced me to watch them cut her throat. It was then I exploded. For some reason we are generally more powerful than the average pokemon, and thanks to this I killed them, all of them. We're scorned, ridiculed, and outcast for this power we hold, no one looks at us without fear." I looked into Leo's eyes, searching for understanding. I wasn't surprised when I found it.

"This is the reason that I'm in such great pain, the main reason at least, but there's a deeper story too." I took a deep breath. "First, you need to know that I am three thousand years old. Not the oldest creature out there, but I am old by both human and pokemon standards. For three thousand years I have been rejected from every group, family, team, home I have ever found. No one accepted me, they called me a freak, an abomination, 'Devil's Child'. Freak especially, and even today when I hear the word, I can't help but cringe. I grew angry, and in time began to fight back when they tried to drive me away. I've killed many in anger, but I'm sure you understand that perfectly well. Second, I have a younger brother, named Madric." Leo recoiled with surprise, then nodded and settled back down so I could finish.

"A lot happened between he and I, but the story you need to know is thankfully short. I was entering my two hundred and ninety seventh year of life, and we had recently fought a large family of aipom, who had tried to drive us away for our differences. I was badly injured, having taken a hit for Madric. We stopped in a meadow and made camp. In my exhaustion I had fallen asleep, only to awake to screaming." My composure was starting to slip; I took a deep breath to steady myself.

"All around us were humans, carrying burning torches and swords. My brother was screaming as he was dragged off by two large men. I tried to fight, I really did, but my wounds made me crumple. I fell unconscious again. All I heard was the human's remark that I'd die soon. That and... and my brothers screams. He screamed, 'Why XiD, why can't you save me? Save me XiD! Is the _freak_ not strong enough to save me?'" I dropped my head and let myself continue crying. Leo, sitting right next to me, began to rub my back consolingly. I stayed like that for a few moments. Then I looked up at Leo's face. There I saw the compassion and understanding I've been looking for.

"When we were fighting I felt weak, and helpless losing to Nera like I did. She kept whispering in my ear when I got in close for an attack, freak. Those words hurt more than the flesh wounds. They threatened to take you away, and all I saw was my brother being dragged away. You're like a brother to me now, Leo, and I don't want to lose you. I don't want to fail again." I collapsed, falling, only to be caught in Leo's arms. He lowered us to the ground slowly and just sat there while I cried, ashamed of my weakness.

"I understand, XiD," he said quietly, "and you don't have to worry." I looked up to see him smiling, rain running down his face. "Cause this brother of yours can take care of himself. Now, ready to head back?" I shook my head and just sat. Until I was ready.

When I was I nodded and stood. It still hurt, like a fresh burn that is still hot, but was lessened, like a few days had passed since the burn. I looked at Leo, my new brother, and smiled. Life was looking up.

**Leo**

When we got back everyone was sitting separated, doing their own thing. First thing I noticed was the number of people doing their own thing.

"Where's Aditi?" I asked casually. Terra looked up from her pokedex.

"She said she had to go to the bathroom." She looked back down.

I frowned, "Why didn't she say anything when we left?" Terra responded without looking up.

"She's a girl, she wasn't gonna go to the bathroom with _you_." I smirked, and then frowned when I realized how strangely this truly was.

"How long has she been gone?" Terra looked up and then counted the minutes on her fingers.

"Well, she left right after you did, in the opposite direction. Why?" I shook my head.

"We've been gone twenty minutes, easy. And we didn't really go to the bathroom. Something is wrong, I'll be right back." As I left, I hadn't noticed that Scar already missing too.

**Aditi**

I watched XiD and Leo leave, ready to follow shortly after. I waited thirty seconds after they had left and stood.

"I have to go to the bathroom too." Raina looked at me suspiciously.

"Why didn't you go with the boys?" I looked at her nervously; glad that she couldn't see it on my face.

"Cause I would be the only girl, alone with two guys while I pee. Not my idea of fun." Raina laughed and I relaxed at her acceptance. It really is too bad I have to lie to such a trusting person.

I left our camp in the opposite direction of Leo and XiD, hoping to avoid any contact with them. I walked through the rain for maybe ten minutes before reaching a large clearing with an oak tree in the center of it.

"This is where he said we'd meet," I said to no one in particular. I waited under tree for another five minutes before I heard movement above me. Without looking I knew who it was.

"Why, hello my dear. Fancy meeting you here." The raspy voice called down.

"Hello, 02235." I sighed, "I came like you asked, what do you want to tell me?" 02235 glided down and sat beside me on the wet ground.

"I don't want to tell you anything, Six." I looked at him confused. "What? Six, it's just more convenient to say, much better than 02236. In fact I would prefer you called me Five."

I glared at him, "Well, _Five_, for your information, I have a name. It's Aditi." Five looked at me for a moment and then started to laugh, he couldn't contain himself. When he settled down he wiped an imaginary tear from his eye.

"Oh, that's a good one," He said, "Did your little boyfriend give you that?" I looked away and he frowned. "He did? I think you're getting far too attached that little team of idiots." I growled at him.

"They're not idiots, they're stronger, smarter, and overall better people than you could ever hope to be." Five stared at me for a long time, analyzing me. When he did speak it was a husky growl.

"You forget your place, Six. Allow me to remind you where you stand." In a moment he had me pinned against a tree. I looked into his eyes, terrified. I was never trained for battle, I was given special genes to attract and persuade people. Now it was useless, held under a gengar half-breed's weight. He smiled a Gengar's impossibly wide smile.

**This is where adult themes start. Again, it's not heavy material, but it is mildly inappropriate. **

"I'm going to give you something you won't forget. I'll show you your place!" His red eyes glowed blue and I felt the tingle of psychic energy, my clothes were ripped from my body. Five paused again, staring at me lustfully. I shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. I had been admired before, but never by someone so... crazed. His eyes flashed evilly and I felt a hand roughly grab my breast.

"Please, don't." I protested, "Silph won't be happy." He growled, giving me a menacing glare, and stuck his other hand between my legs. I whined in distress, but couldn't escape his probing fingers.

"What's wrong, Six," He teased, "This is what you were created for after all, to be the perfect sexual tool." His already wide grin grew wider, stretching across his face and reaching his ears. I looked down and could see his member already hardening. I moaned in fear, but Five only took it as encouragement.

He stopped his probing, and slowly moved his shaft to my opening. Just before he reached it, he stopped. I looked at him, hoping he would stop, that maybe he had come to his senses, but his wicked grin said otherwise. He turned me around, pressing my breasts against the bark. I felt his hand, wet with my fluids, probing again, now at the base of my tail. I cried out in pain when his finger was jammed inside my ass. It was a horrible feeling, like being dirty and knowing you can never clean the feeling away.

He kept his finger inside me for a minute and then pulled it out. Again I foolishly mistook this for him stopping. I felt a mix of pain and surprise when I felt his member fill the hole his finger had left, stretching my insides painfully.

**End of actual sex related things. The next sentence hints at what happened if you can piece it together. Enjoy the rest of the story.**

"We have to maintain your virginity, just in case. This way should be perfectly safe." I sobbed into the tree, not wanting to look into his face. I gave one last futile cry for help, and was silenced with a slap. "Shut up, bitch! I don't want your little friends ruining this-" I gasped with relief when I felt his weight leave me, and sighed with the freedom of being in control of my own body.

I looked to my right and saw Five laying on the ground, staring angrily at a figure behind me. I turned around, both to protect my fragile hole and to see my savior, I was half expecting, and half hoping it would be Leo. It wasn't.

Scar was glaring angrily down at Five, daring to meet the violent glare.

"Don't touch her." He growled, not loudly, but the menace was clear in his voice. Five stared up at him in disbelief, but laughed when he realized it was a mere human.

"What are you going to do? Punch me again? You don't have the strength to-" He was silenced when Scar started violently stomping his groin.

"I may have failed anatomy, but I'm pretty sure this'll fucking hurt." He continued to stomp. Five tryed to protect himself in vain, eventually he just teleported away, to where I don't care, but he better not come back.

I looked at Scar with thanks, hoping he hadn't saved me only to do the same as what nearly happened to me. I took a cautionary step back as he took a step forward. When he continued towards me I froze, fearing the worse. I was surprised when simply wrapped his arms around me, pulling me close to him. I hadn't realized how cold I was until he hugged me, but now I couldn't resist snuggling into his chest. We stayed like that, motionless. The realization of what nearly happened to me set in and I started to cry.

Scar whispered soothingly and rubbed my back. "Shh, it's ok. He is gone, your going to be ok. I'll protect you, I promise." His hand ran from the top of my shoulder blades to the base of my tail, his fingers rubbed into my wet fur, scratching the skin underneath.

I soon relaxed under his gentle scratching, and stopped crying, content to stand in his arms. I whined with protest when he stepped back, but also jumped, to cover myself, when I saw Leo standing at the edge of the clearing, smiling.

"Am I interrupting something?" He asked jokingly. Scar looked at me and blushed, I could also feel heat rising to my cheeks. He shook his head.

"I'll tell you later, but right now Aditi needs some clothes." Leo had reached the tree by now and looked at me confused, but settled to wait. Scar took off his jacket and slung it over my shoulders. I accepted it, glad for the warmth. I smiled at him and thought back to what he'd done. He had saved me from a horrible experience. I still had pain to remind of it, but I realize it could have been so much worse. I stayed close to Scar's side as we walked back to the camp, strangely happy to have him by my side.

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There ya go, Chapter 24. I made it just a little longer, to make up for being late last time. So, Five is back and he is doing naughty things. What has happened between Scar and Aditi? What does Leo have to say about it? Is Aditi still working for Silph? So many questions, only one way to get the answers. Keep reading! And review!


	25. You Don't Know Nightmares

Here is Chapter 25. I am so proud of the progress I have made with this story. This chapter is like a milestone for me, and will be making it extra long for the occasion. This will include a little bit of XiD's past, like what I did with Leos, except it won't take up three chapters. The random line in the middle of the story marks the beginning of XiD's dream. I would do it in italics like any other dream, but this one will be long as Hell. Thanks to Dragonfang20 and Czar for reviewing, and to Dragonfang20 for the OC idea, he will be here soonish. Thanks to Anonymous1 as well. I really wish you guys would sign in, I have so much I wanna say about his review. Thanks to Alex999139 and Wish counselor for favoriting. On with the fic!

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**XiD**

As we continued walking, my mind began to wander. I should have known it would drift to the darker of my thoughts. The confession I had given Leo only scratched the surface of why I was in pain. I knew people could see it in my eyes, but I still tried to hide it. I closed my eyes, holding back the pain and lapsing in it, the memories came back bright and vivid, the pain was fresh and new.

It really started when I was a young, sixty-seven years old. I was still a ghastly back then, and yes, half-breeds can evolve.

To begin, my father was a young priest, only ten, of the society of native Indians in the area. His culture preached equality between humans and the pokemon they came in daily contact with, and in a sense were the first pokemon trainers. My father met my mother while investigating reports of hauntings in the burial sites of his people. When he investigated he found my mother, a haunter at the time. My father convinced her to leave, and she was bonded to him. It is a ghost pokemon thing, usually we bond to a person or a place and we stay with it, or them, forever, even beyond death or destruction. My mother was bonded to the burial grounds, and when my father separated her from them she bonded to him. There's a long, complicated series of reactions that take place in a ghost pokemon within a matter of seconds, and I would rather not get into detail.

My mother stayed with my father for six years and naturally her bond with him grew. I was born less than a year later. My father kept me hidden, for although his people accepted, and even promoted, the bonds between pokemon and humans, relationships between races were strictly forbidden. He moved away from the main structure of his people, and several miles away we built a small home, safe from the prying eyes of those who would disagree. Within another five years my brother was born, and at the time we were content to be where we were. We had very little human contact beyond my father, and we stayed happy for many years. My father had grown old and was eighty-three when we made a mistake.

I was sixty-seven and my brother was sixty-two. In a ghost pokemon's life, they reach a certain point and their body's no longer age. I was physically about twenty-five, as I am now. My brother, Madric was about sixteen. As we were raised far from other humans we were curious as to how they lived. My brother and I had snuck out to go to the human city to learn, and it was the biggest mistake we had ever made.

My mind snapped back to the present when I realized that we had stopped walking. Looking around, I found us to be in the shelter of a grove of trees. I smiled and started helping set up camp as a brief reprieve from the rain. When tents were up and a fire was blazing, I leaned back on my bedroll and smiled. Leo looked at me funny.

"What's on your mind, XiD? That smile is way too... content for you." I smiled again and dozed off. In the depths of your mind you have little control. What little you have is accented in times of unconsciousness, such as sleep. And my mind was running wild with memories. These were no longer images. These were real to me, and they were truly terrifying.

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I shushed Madric, being careful not to alert the humans mere feet away. It was so exciting for us to be this close. We had snuck into the human city in the early morning while it was still dark and were hiding in the market place, watching and learning. It was strangely exhilarating to be so close to the taboo. Our father had told us so many times that humans were bad, but how could these wonderful, industrious creatures be bad?

I don't know how long we sat under that pile of baskets, just watching, but Madric soon became restless. It began with muttering under his breath, then randomly bumping a basket. Not enough to draw attention to us, but enough to make people look around. I tried to make him stop, but he's Madric.

Eventually he got too daring and knocked a basket out of its place. I froze, watching as it fell slowly, hitting the ground with a sickening crunch. The first to notice its displacement was the shopkeeper. Absently he went to pick it up, most likely assuming it was some animal or passerby, but he had far too much common sense. He realized the rest of the baskets were still standing.

Before he could raise an alarm I broke through the baskets, dragging Madric behind me. Now in the light of day people gasped and screamed at the sight of us. We were pretty frightening. What would you think if you saw a pure black human with a floating head? Friendly ghastly half-breed? I think not.

We ran through the crowded streets recklessly, using our natural ghost forms to slip through obstacles. A mob was forming behind us and beginning to give chase. I told Madric to keep running and turned back at the charging humans. Madric stared at me like I was crazy, but kept running. I watched the mob approach, readying myself. When they were a mere ten feet away I released my surprise.

The humans in front turned and started attacking their comrades, forced to do it from my confuse ray. I turned away and followed Madric, hoping they would be stalled for long enough, and hoping Marcus had gotten away. I broke into a sprint heading for the forest. The trees were welcome cover after the openness of the city streets. When I felt I was safe I stopped and called out to Madric. I used my telepathic voice to allow it to carry farther.

"_Madric! Where are you? Are you all right?"_ At first there was nothing and I began to worry, then there was the familiar brush of minds and Madric's voice rang in my thoughts.

"_I'm fine, but I can't move. There are humans everywhere XiD! I'm hiding under a wagon at the edge of the forest, but they saw me running from the city. Help, XiD."_ I sent a soothing wave through our link and ran off, following his thought patterns. I stayed in the trees, out of sight of patrols looking for us. I ran along the border, feeling myself get closer to my brother. Finally the link was strong enough to know his general location.

"_I found you, just stay calm and wait for me to yell your name. When you hear me, run, do you understand? You run, straight into the trees, and away from humanity. Go home, I'll meet you there. Got it?"_I made my voice forceful, pushing my instructions. I felt his understanding and severed the link, having to focus on what I was going to do. I needed a large enough distraction to give Madric the time he needed, but I also needed it to be quick. Flashy was the way to go.

I looked between the trees and spotted a farm house, surrounded by searching humans. I saw the overturned wagon that Madric must have been under and saw the searchers getting dangerously close. Thinking quickly, I used my power to hover in the air, while at the same time spinning shadow balls around my body, making myself look dangerous. Taking a deep breath I floated into the clearing and shouted.

"Humans! Bow before my might!" I threw several shadow balls at the ground before them, causing small explosions and shaking the humans. Several ran immediately, but yet more stood their ground. Angry, I used psychic to lift several into the air, adding them to my spinning display. :Do not trifle with me, I own your lives now. If you wish to keep them, leave!" I threw the humans I had picked up into the arms of their comrades. "Fear the name, Madric!" I shouted, giving Madric his cue to bolt. I saw the wagon lift out of the corner of my eye, and saw his shape in a black blur as he ran. I turned back to the humans, some still bravely standing their ground.

"Do you dare fight me?I will crush you." One brave person stood, meeting my fiery glare with one of his own.

"We aren't afraid of freaks." He boldly yelled, "You don't have the power to-" I shut him up by using psychic to grab his throat. I floated forward until I was looking down into his eyes.

"Don't test me," I whispered threateningly, "or I will show exactly what a _freak_ can do." Just then I felt myself thrown to the ground and pinned, loosing my grip on my power. I looked around wildly for my assailant, but was surprised to find no one near me, yet the binding of my limbs was proof enough of one thing.

"Psychic type," I growled as a human and a gardevoir walked up to my pinned body. The gardevoir's eyes were glowing with power. I growled at them looking as threatening as possible while flat on my back. The human looked down unimpressed and smiled.

"We have a feisty one Patricia, and no matter how much he tries to intimidate me, he's still a weak, half-breed, freak." His smile grew wider, but his gardevoir, Patricia, looked almost pained. "I am going to enjoy killing this one." The man growled. Patricia looked sad, but didn't move. I struggled to free myself and only succeeded in making my captor laugh. "Weak little freak, poor you." I glared up at him and smiled, making him frown.

"Oh yeah," I said, "I'm a weak little freak." I summoned a shadow ball and hurled it towards Patricia. She dodged, but released me in her escape, and in a moment I was on my feet and spinning. The spin allowed me to avoid a couple of psychic blasts aimed at me, and allowed me to gain momentum. I used it to send my fist flying, and straight into the man's face.

The strength was great enough to send the man airborne. When he landed I smiled and yelled, "Who's weak now?" I turned tail and ran, heading straight for the trees. I was behind cover in seconds and racing home, glad to be away from my captors. I sprinted full on, not wanting to be followed.

When I arrived home I ran into a furious gengar. My mother was steaming mad and simply pointed towards the house, not wanting to yell out and attract attention. She always was good at interpreting situations. I marched inside the house with my head bowed, heading straight for the room Madric and I shared, sensing him already there. When I walked in he smiled, portraying his relief that I was ok, but frowned and sat on the opposite bed when my mother followed me in.

"What were you thinking?" She yelled at us, "How many times have we told you not to go to the city? We knew this would happen, there was a reason we told you not to. Did you think we were joking? Did just think this was all fun and games? They would have killed you! Why did you go? To steal? To tease the humans? What is wrong with you?" The tirade of rhetorical questions continued for several minutes, as was our mother's way, until it gave way to angry huffing and disapproving glares. Finally she settled down and just sat on my bed, tired of being angry. She motioned Madric over and hugged us both. "I'm just glad you're safe."

We stayed like that for another several minutes. I finally separated us to ask my mother a question.

"Why?" I asked, "Why do they fear us so? Father doesn't scream and yell when he sees us." Madric grinned.

"Unless we want him to." I smiled and nodded.

"But they treat us like demons. We are hated for our existence, not for anything we have done. Why?" Mom sighed and sat thinking. She thought for a long time before responding.

"They don't understand." She said, "All they know is that there are humans, and there are pokemon. They can't accept that there's a middle ground. I'm sure that if met one of them one on one, you could persuade them otherwise, but when humans are in large groups, they tend to think like fish. They don't make their own decisions, they just follow the school. It's called a mob mentality. Everyone just does what everyone else does. You may have noticed that the humans just kinda stared at you until someone screamed? The moment that person screamed they assumed there was a threat and targeted you. Mob mentality set in and they lost control." She took a deep breath and I nodded, starting to understand.

"Mom," She went hmm, "humans are weird." She started laughing and we smiled. "How do you know so much, Mom?" She smiled and her eyes glazed slightly with memory.

"I've been around a long, long time. I've seen at least one civilization rise and fall. I know the workings of humans, they're rather complex." She smiled at us again, losing the glazed look. "Now go get washed up for dinner, your father will be home soon. After that, straight to bed, you're still in trouble."

"Yes mam!" We both said, and ran to do as we were told.

I awoke that night to yelling. The room was aglow with fire light. I ran to window and gasped. Massed outside were hundreds of humans, all bearing torches and weapons of some kind. I recognized the man that had threatened me and growled. I looked and saw Madric awake as well, sitting up in his bed and looking confused. I gave him the universal sign for quiet, putting a finger to my lips and gestured for him to follow, planning to sneak out the back. I took one more glance out the window and froze.

My father was standing before the mob, dressed in a plain gray bath robe, my mother floating at his side. His stood tall against the accusations hurled at him. He looked younger than he has in years. Partially due to the sword belted at his hip and partially due to his steely glare. It was strangely frightening to see him alone there, helpless if the crowd chose to attack. I stayed at the window, watching the shouting match erupt.

"We know you're harboring the freaks! You're the only person with a ghost companion for miles!" My father glanced over the crowd, looking for the speaker. Finding none, he addressed the entirety.

"You have no right to come to my home and accuse me of that which you have no proof. Why have you come with your false accusations and insults?" The crowd stirred, confused by his words, until one man yelled.

"Than why do carry steel?" Many murmured their agreement. My father didn't skip a beat.

"You expect me to stand against a violent mob unarmed? I would rather die fighting than be executed." Again some nodded, but the same voice shouted again.

"If you are innocent then you would have no need to stand against us. Enter the house!" People roared and began advancing. My father drew his sword, faster than his age should have allowed, and people paused, but continued on. When they were yards apart my father shouted, halting them.

"Take another step, and you will die by my hand. My home will not be violated by such heathens! Leave me in peace, or rest in peace, it's your choice." His sword began to dance with black flames, and I noticed my mother's eyes glowing faintly. A single person walked in front of the crowd. He was a large man, not one you would want to fight in a bar. He wore all leather, deep scars scratched into its surface. His unshaven beard cast flickering shadow across his face. He wielded a large battle axe, looking heavier than he. He laughed down on my father, who must have been at least half his height.

"You're all intimidated by a sickly old man? You're pathetic. I'll kill him now and we can get the freaks." He lifted his axe high in the air. The moment it was above his head my father lunged, using speed he shouldn't have had at his age. The light purple aura hinted at the aid he was getting. He stabbed the sword into the man's stomach. He screamed and collapsed. I could see the black flames that had engulfed the sword swimming in the wound, burning and eating flesh. The man continued to scream for several minutes, while people stood back in horror. When the man finally fell silent the night had a placid atmosphere that was flatter than any lake. Nothing moved, until a fatal scream rang out.

"Kill him!" The mob charged, wildly swinging the weapons they held. Immediately, many in the front line froze, halting some of those in the back. My mother raised her arms and they went flying. She used a focused blast of psychic power to incapacitate many of the humans, but they kept coming. My father hacked and slashed a bloody trench into their attack, but they kept coming. The ground turned red from the blood spilled, but they kept coming. I sat, awe-struck by the spectacle of my parents fight. My father was spinning terror, my mother was stationary fear, together they were violent death. I began to hope that maybe they would repel the crowd and force them to run, but I have always been a horrible optimist. I watched in horror as a man ran behind my father. I watched helplessly as he was stabbed in the back. I watched in horror as my father spun, taking the man's head clean off, before collapsing to his knees. The man that had threatened me ran to him, kicking his sword aside and yanking his head back by the hair.

"Enough!" He screamed, halting my mother in fury. It dissolved when she saw my father, helpless at the hands of the enemy, "Bring us your freak children, or I will kill him! I will kill him, then I will kill you, then I will kill them, and I will enjoy their deaths especially. It will be violent, it will bloody, and it will be wonderful." My mother shook with fury.

"You're sick." The man only smiled at her insult.

"No sicker than you for breeding the devil's children. Now, will you give them to me?" My mother didn't move. "No? Excellent." Quickly, he drew a knife and sliced my father's throat. A large red smile appeared on my father's neck, the sadistic smile of death himself. The moment the man finished his upper body disappeared. His legs took two steps and fell. I looked at my mother in awe.

"What did you do to him?" One man called out. My mother looked into the crowd calmly.

"I took from him what he took from me. Half of me. I loved that man, and he had become as a part of me as my own body. With him gone I have no reason to live." She walked to my father's fallen sword, still dancing with black fire. The moment it was raised to her breast I was out the window, screaming.

"No! You have us!" The sword was driven down, into her heart, mortally wounding her. She would die in seconds. In those seconds she turned to me, smiling. The smile was pained, yet happy. Completely peaceful. I caught her body as it crumpled to the ground, sobbing into her cold shoulder. I looked up at the crowd. "Why? What have we done to you? Why would you do this? What is wrong with this world?" I continued to cry. Eventually the mob grew restless and one man called out.

"Why should we care what a freak says, they don't feel like we do." I snapped. Something in me stressed beyond breaking point and snapped. The tears stopped running. I stood facing the crowd.

"If I don't feel, then I'll have no remorse after doing this." I charged a shadow ball in my hand and thrust it into the heart of the nearest man. He died instantly. Several people shuffled back as I roared to the sky releasing my emotion in the primal act. I felt empowered as a white light blinded me. I roared through the light. When I could see again I stopped, staring into the frightened faces of the crowd.

"What the hell," One man said, "It evolved? It can do that?" I pinpointed his voice and jumped over the heads of many humans, landing right behind the man that spoken.

"I'm a he." Said in his ear before snapping his neck. People started to scream and run, fearing my rage. "Oh no you don't." I said letting loose a psychic wave that covered the whole crowd, holding them in my mental grip. Unable to move, I walked in front of each frozen body saying, "This is for mother and father." Then punching my fist through their skulls. I allowed the dead bodies to crumple. I continued to the crowd, keeping a tally of each man I killed. I didn't stop, despite my knuckles starting to bleed, until they were all lying on the ground. I panted, my adrenaline lost in the agony of depression. I quietly noted Madric walking up behind me. While looking at him I spoke.

"One-hundred and eighty-three." I said, "I just killed one-hundred and eighty-three men. Their blood is on my hands." I looked back at Madric, his eyes wide with disbelief.

"You're," He paused, taking a deep breath, "You're a freak, XiD." And he walked away from me. Open mouthed in shock, I could do nothing but follow.

My dream suddenly shifted, memories blurred by a spectral light display. I stared openly, distracted by the swirling colors. I barely noticed when they had solidified again. I looked around, memories catching up with me. I had been rejected by everyone I had ever met, save my family. I had just run from a colony of electabuzz, and now I was resting in this clearing, planning my next action.

I was lying in the grass and staring up at the stars. Their twinkling brilliance distracted me and I didn't notice the other person until he was standing over me. I looked up, but the face was shrouded in shadow, he looked human though. I smiled, trying to look friendly.

"Hi there, Mister."I greeted pleasantly. The man shook his head.

"You really have fallen a long way, XiD." I was on my feet in an instant. I recognized that voice. That was the voice of the person who I had taken care of for two-hundred years. That was the voice of the person who had been abruptly abducted one-hundred tears ago. That was the voice of the person who had been missing for so long, I had assumed him dead. That was the voice of my brother, Madric. I hugged him, not caring to ask permission. I pulled back, holding him by the shoulders, when he didn't return the gesture.

"Madric? How have you been? Where did you go? What happened? Are you a gengar now?When did you evolve? I was so worried. Madric? Why aren't you speaking? Madric? Madric, speak to me." His eyes shot up. His powerful glare left me paralyzed. I held my breath at the cold rage in his eyes.

"You want to know what happened?" His voice was calm and measured, and creepier for it, "The humans took me to therir town, tied me to a wooden pole, and whipped me. A hundred lashes for the sin of living, another hundred for speaking, another hundred for god damn being able to see. Another hundred for pretending to feel! Another fucking hundred for wanting food! Another mother fucking hundred for crying! ANOTHER MOTHER FUCKING HUNDRED FOR FALLING UNCONSCIOUS!" His breath came in ragged gasps from his yelling. I stared it him, surprised by the fear, and pain in his voice. When he had caught his breath he continued. "When they were done with all my crimes, they called out to the crowd, 'Who would like to beat the freak for his crimes?' Everyone volunteered, even the children, gods the children were the worst. There were six-hundred and seventy-eight people. They each delivered eight-hundred lashes with a piece of rusty chain. You do the math, XiD! How many times did I get whipped?"I stayed silent. " It continued for weeks. I lost track of the days. I was able to survive with a small hope in my heart. The hope that you would come. I retained that hope for twenty god-damned years! I was tied to that fucking post for twenty god damned years! They made whipping me an annual event, a carnival game! I killed everyone in that town, XiD. Because you weren't there! Where the hell were you?" His breathing was rough and jagged again. He stopped his rant and just stared at me, waiting for an answer, waiting for answer that I did not have.

"I..." The words caught in my throat. I coughed and tried again, "I looked for you. I truly did, but I didn't know where to start. I couldn't connect to you mentally; I had no way to know where you were. I gave up on the immediate area and began searching the world. When I didn't find you after seventy years, I assumed you dead, killed by the humans." Madric only nodded.

"You gave up on me, you left me to die. You know something? On that whipping post, when I just blocked out the pain, I had a lot of time to think. I have come to a realization. Everything that has ever happened to me has been your fault. You're the one who convinced me to go to the human city all those years ago. You're the one who failed to protect our parents. You're the one who failed to protect me, then failed to find me! It is your fault that I suffered!" I just shook my head.

"Brother-"

"Shut up!" He screeched, "You're no brother of mine. You're a useless, unwanted, hated, disgusting, freak! That night you killed that mob in front of our home, and I walked away. I wanted to be away from you! You were a freak then, and you're a freak now. I hate you. If I ever see you again, I'll kill you, I'll kill the freak."He turned away from me. I bowed my head in total shock, truly understanding what he just told me. Every word struck me harder than any fist could. I felt each blow physically. I couldn't take it, he was right. I did the only thing I could. I laughed.

"Dijo, dijo, dijo." Madric turned back staring at me. I looked up at him, smiling as big as I could. "Dijo, dijo, dijo." He glared at me.

"What the hell is that? Why are you smiling?"

"Dijo, dijo, dijo. I just hurts so bad. I have been rejected by everyone in this world. I have had everything torn from me, and all that is left for me is to laugh and smile my way through it, else I'll die under the torment of my own soul, dijo, dijo, dijo." He stared at me for a long time, then turned away again.

"You fucking freak." Then he walked away, and I just sat there laughing.

**Leo**

I looked around our makeshift camp, observing the packing of all the tools. Noticing XiD, tossing and turning in his sleep, I walked to the tree he was sleeping against and watched him for a moment. He kept rocking back and forth, muttering something about apologies and laughing. Not wanting to suffer in whatever twisted nightmare he was enduring I hit him on the shoulder.

"Hey, XiD. Waky, waky. Come on lazy, we're marchin'." His eyes shot open, looking around nervously, but relaxed when he got a view of his surroundings. As he stood I looked into his eyes. I frowned and he smiled his all too familiar smile before walking off to help finish packing up. His eyes were filled with the pain he had held in for so long. I knew I hadn't released it all the other day, but it had definitely lessened. Yet today it was back, and in a greater force than I had ever seen before.

I looked over the camp and noticed no one was talking. Scar and Aditi were closer than usual, Terra was ignoring Ember's attempts to annoy her, and Raina was silently packing her supplies. When XiD started packing a tent he was much the same, silent and distant. I sighed. Our group was too soon formed to be falling apart already.

When we began walking nothing changed. Still silent, trudging through the rain we had become accustomed to.

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That is the longest single thing I have ever written ever. XiD's past, tell me what ya think. I'm too tired to say much else. Thanks for reading! Review!


	26. Shield Town

Alright, sorry for the delay, to my growing fan base, this chapter was a lot of trial and error. It SHOULD be perfect because I rewrote it least twenty times. Thank you DragonFang20, Czar Lawrence III, shiny eevee4, FrostDeman, Alex999139, AnimeKing1143, and two anonymous reviewers, you know who you are, for reviewing last chapter. Several people added this story to their favorites, but I can't remember who exactly. In other news, Spring Passion is blossoming (pun), and Dani California still has 19 hits... On with the fic!

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**Leo**

The day was beautiful for hiking. The birds were singing, the trees were green, it was actually sunny for once, and...

"It's still raining?" Ember asked the sky for the hundredth time. I looked at her and smiled. Though it was bright and sunny today, it was still pouring rain. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't been walking through it. The day was still young and the large dome that protected Shield Town could be seen just above the trees.

"Come on," I told Ember, "brighten up, we're almost there." I smiled wide, trying my best to be encouraging. Ember, with her fur matted against her body, and some of it over her face, looked like The Grudge. It was especially creepy because when she turned to stare at me, she only moved her head, giving the effect that it wasn't even attached to her body. I shuddered and turned back to the path. Trying to get that disturbing picture out of my mind, I looked around, taking in the serene beauty of nature.

The path we were walking was covered in a carpet of lush, green grass. The trees were filled with singing bird pokemon, each with its own song. The forest floor had shaking bushes, the only sign of life. I tried tracking the movements, but their sporadic nature made it impossible. The clouds above my head were fluffy, white, and perfect. It was the best day I had seen ever. Even the rain wasn't able to bother me. There was something, though. I just couldn't put my finger on it. There was something wrong with my perfect world. I looked at Terra and saw Bell floating just over her shoulder, facing the trees to our right. And she was ringing.

"Bell, could you cut that out?" She didn't even acknowledge me. I turned back to the scenery, deciding to return the treatment. I was able to keep it up for five minutes, and then it just became unbearable. She kept getting louder and louder. I glared at Bell again, intending to yell at her. She was still ringing, louder, but now she was looking behind us. My curiosity got the better of me and I looked back as well. What I saw left me dazed and confused.

"Interesting." A man was using a tape measure on Aditi's arms, occasionally he would make a note on a clipboard he had. Aditi had her mouth taped shut and was looking pleadingly at me. I could do nothing about it. I was stunned motionless. He scuttled around her, much like a lizard, muttering unintelligible words. The man was wearing a gray business suit with a black tie, and over his shoulder he had a solid black guitar case. The multicolored strap was decorated with surprisingly accurate pictures of legendary pokemon He was tall and angular; his calculating eyes were slanted and wood brown. He had full lips, and his skin was ruddy. His fine, wavy, ebony hair was worn in a style that reminded me of the petals of a vileplume. Several overlapping brown petals, formed in a circle. He also had wide feet. He was the second strangest man I had ever seen, next to Professor Redwood.

"Interesting," He said again, "very interesting, a pikachu half-breed. Shapely, tall, a rather perfect specimen if I do say so myself." He smirked and pushed a pair of black wire frame glasses up his nose. I noticed that they didn't have lenses. By now I had gathered enough composure to alert our group.

"What the fuck?" I heard them all turn, then Scar shouted.

"Hey, what are you doing to Aditi?" He ran past me and headed straight for the strange man. Just before he reached, the strange man, who was measuring Aditi's leg, stood up straight. He took a step back and tripped Scar as he ran by. Scar sprawled out when he hit the ground. XiD started laughing. The man shook his head and pulled the clipboard in front of his face.

"Very interesting." By now Aditi had regained herself and was ripping the tape off of her mouth. After a pained scream she turned to the strange man who was leaning over Scar.

"Who are you?" He turned back and bowed.

"Monique Lynem: Guitar specialist, and researcher of the interesting." He turned back to Scar, who by now had stood back up. He pulled out his tape measure again and began measuring Scar's scar. "Interesting, this must have hurt." Scar took a swing at his flowered head, but Monique stepped away, allowing Scar's momentum to carry through and send him to the ground. XiD had to hold his sides because he was laughing too much. Monique walked to Raina and immediately grabbed hold of her breasts, one in each hand. She yelped and shot a flamethrower into his face. When the flames cleared Monique was perfectly fine, if not a little singed. XiD was rolling on the ground, gasping for air.

"What?" Raina asked as her chest was fondled. Monique stopped and scribbled something on his clipboard, all the time muttering to himself.

"If the space... Skyscrapers... Big Bang... Mutant tauros..." These were just tiny snatches of Monique's private conversation I was able to collect. Terra, Ember, Bell and I just stood dumb struck as the rest of our party was growing increasingly angry at the man. Except XiD, he was dying from laughter. His black face was swirling purple, the closest he could get to blue in the face. He had been holding his breath too long. Monique avoided everything thrown at him, and that which he couldn't, he just took it and shook it off. I watched for a while until the madness could no longer be taken.

"Stop!" Everyone froze when I shouted. Everyone, except Monique and XiD. XiD was laughing even harder, which I didn't believe was possible, and Monique scurried around for a bit before settling himself in front of a small beetle on the ground. The group around me was silent. I calmly looked at Terra, noting the shock on her face.

"We're leaving." I said with authority. I changed into a pikachu and jumped on Terra's shoulder. Behind me I heard Monique scurrying around a bit, but I ignored it. Terra had taken a single step before I was grabbed around the waist and yanked from my position.

"Interesting," I heard Monique say as I was turned every direction, "I have yet to see any creature with shape changing abilities. Tell me, what else can you be?" I change back into my natural state, forcing Monique to drop me and to go back to scribbling on his clipboard.

"I can change into whatever the fuck I want." This man was really starting to irritate me. He nodded, wrote something down, and pulled out a pokeball.

"Sneak, meet my new test subject." He said, releasing the pokemon. From the light appeared a human. He was slightly shorter than most, but not a midget. He wore red camouflage pants designed to look like lava, a gray undershirt, and a red, short-sleeved jacket. The jacket covered his mouth and nose, and his hair and forehead were covered by a silver headband. All I could see of him was his tanned arms, and cool, emotionless eyes. He took one look at me and turned to Monique.

"I don't see anything special about him." His voice was a droning monotone. Monique grinned and patted Sneak on the head.

"He can change shape. And no, he isn't a ditto like yourself." Terra stared at Monique with disbelief.

"I have never heard of a ditto that can take on a human's shape." Sneak turned to her, still completely deadpan.

"I have never met a human that was so ignorant." Terra fumed and was about to start shouting when I shushed her. I wanted to see what these two had for me.

"Well?" Sneak barely questioned, the only indication being a raised eyebrow. I smirked and began to change.

I went through all different species. Everything you could imagine, from the legendaries, to rattata. I even took on several different human shapes just to show off. When I finished I just stared at Sneak. He made a noise and turned to Monique, who was furiously writing a hole in his clipboard.

"He's different, all right. What do you want with him?" Monique looked up and smiled, adding a totally new dimension to his face.

"Like I said, he will be my test subject for the next few weeks." I glared at him. I didn't want yet another lunatic following us around for a few weeks.

"I say hell no. I don't want someone with such a girly name hanging with us. What will it do to our reputation?" Monique frowned, adding yet another unknown dimension to his face.

"Now why on earth would you call my name girly?" I smirked, happy to finally have rattled him.

"Cause it is. I know of one male named Monique, and that's you. I did know three others, but they all got sex changes. I suggest you do the same." His frowned turned up into a vicious smile; it radiated evil like nothing else. He stalked forward and punched me square in the jaw. I could feel the power behind it, and anyone else probably have been flat on their back. But I'm not anyone else. While his fist was still touching my face I released a powerful thunderbolt in hopes of knocking him unconscious. When the light faded, and he was still standing, I was more than a little surprised. He took a step back and cracked his neck. Just so you know, XiD was laughing through all of it.

"Oh yes," He said, "he will be an interesting test subject." He cracked his knuckles and made to step up to me again, but he was held back by Sneak.

"Now is not the time," he muttered, "I'd rather not get into the middle of a fire fight between you two." I growled and turned away.

"I don't give a rat's ass. I'm going, come on everybody. And XiD, shut up. You're forgetting to breath again." XiD took a huge breath and stood, still giggling. I started walking. Behind me I heard the scuttling that was Monique. I walked faster, he scuttled faster. We continued until I was in a dead run and he was scuttling after me on all fours. I kept running until I hit the Shield Town barrier, and fell unconscious. Again. I assumed my teammates caught up, because when I awoke I was in a Pokemon Center.

I walked out into the lobby and growled when I saw Monique, casually leaning over the counter and examining a very uncomfortable Nurse Joy.

"I truly must know why you and your sisters all look identical. It is very interesting." I grabbed him by the collar of his business suit and dragged him across the floor. I motioned for everyone else, including Sneak, to follow. They all got up from their seats and did as they were told. When I was outside I looked up, expecting rain, but only saw the barrier. Dismissing it I pulled Monique around to face me.

"Listen creep, if you insist on following us around I have to lay down some ground rules. First, no 'testing' us without permission. Second, no random examinations of complete strangers. Third, you will listen to us. If we tell you to do something, do it, and don't ask questions. Fourth, and finally, don't let your ditto steal our things." I turned a glare to Sneak, he shrugged and emptied his pockets of our money, pokedex's, and general items.

"I can't help it," he droned, "It's in my nature." Lightning quick he grabbed Terra's breasts, then, just as quickly, he pushed his pokeball on Monique's belt and disappeared. Crafty bastard. I sighed and just started walking.

"I'll get him when he gets out, let's go beat the gym leader." Terra nodded, not so easily flustered. The gym was centered in the town, probably to equally project the barrier around the it. It was built just like any other. It had a receptionist, and a door leading to the gym. The receptionist, a bored looking guy, just kinda nodded as we walked in. With out paying him much attention, we walked through the door and out onto the gym floor.

It was built as solid, seamless steel. There were no rivets, and no welding, the room looked as if it was made from a single piece of steel, molded into the square shape. On the opposite end of the white arena lines was Jessica Moulderes, she was wearing a long tan trench coat, and was currently floating five feet off the ground, sitting crossed legged. Her eyes were closed, but when Terra was about to call out, they snapped open. She said nothing, simply straightened her legs and dropped to the ground. The moment she touched, a referee entered the room. He stood in his appointed spot and raised his flags.

"This battle will be three on three. No substitutions, no items. The challenger may start first. Begin!" Terra grabbed Ember and threw her onto the field.

"Ember, go!" Ember flipped mid-air and landed on her feet. She did a little dance, then stood still, patiently. Jessica didn't say a word. A pokeball floated behind her and flew out to the field. It opened and released a slowpoke. Terra growled at the type disadvantage, but didn't let it faze her.

"Use pound, Ember!" Ember ran at the slowpoke, who just sat there dumbly. Without warning, it opened its mouth and a ring of water appeared. I immediately noticed the water pulse, but Terra didn't. Ember kept running and was hit dead on when the attack was released. As Ember flew backwards, the slowpoke closed its eyes. Its body began to glow. Once again, I recognized the move, calm mind, but Terra was confused. Ember was already out, so Terra kept up the assault.

"Run around it Ember, and use ember!" Ember started running a wide circle around the slowpoke, spiraling in slightly for an easier target. She fired her little flames at slowpoke, hardly doing anything. When her circle got a little too close, she jumped back a foot, still firing embers. "Next time, when you get close, use pound." Terra called. Ember didn't respond, but when she got close again she jumped high in the air and brought a pound down on the slowpokes back. He didn't even flinch. Ember was surrounded by a light blue aura. She flailed in the air a moment as she was held by confusion, but it didn't last long before she was hurled back at us. She landed at Terra's feet, out cold.

"The challenger is unable to battle, Slowpoke wins." The referee called. Terra grabbed me by the shoulder and shoved me into the field.

"Show no mercy." She growled as she picked Ember up. I nodded at her.

"Jessica is using telekinesis to direct her pokemon," I told Terra, only recently coming to this realization, "Don't say a word to me, let me fight. If anyone asks, you were doing the same as her." Terra nodded grimly. I stepped out into the field and growled at the slowpoke. I was in my half-breed form, and it left the referee a little flustered, but he ignored it.

"Begin round two!" I dashed at the slowpoke, faster than the human eye could see. I stopped behind it, already charging electricity. It tried to turn around, but it is, after all, called a slowpoke for a reason. I unleashed a thunderbolt , taking it out with one hit. I stepped away and the same pokeball floated up to recaptured slowpoke. The referee shouted, but I cut him off.

"Would you shut up? We know what to do, for Arceus' sake, just stand there and tell me when I won." The man shut up and glared at me, which I returned with gusto. Another pokeball floated out into the field. It opened to reveal a mime jr. It did a little spin and bowed, making an entrance. I waited until it looked up again and fired a thundershock. A light blue aura surrounded the pokemon, and my attack was sent wide. Confusion, the second most annoying attack next to confuse ray. I felt its effects trying to move me, but I resisted, using my own mental power and physical strength. I ran at the mime jr., intending to punch it since I couldn't hit it with electricity. I saw light yellow lines beginning to swirl around its fist, but I dismissed it. Never dismiss it. When I reached it I punched him in the stomach, but not before it hit me in the forehead with dizzy punch. Mime jr. was knocked out, but now I was so confused I thought I was my own enemy. I started punching myself in the face, and banging my head on the steel floor, determined to defeat myself. I didn't notice another pokemon enter the arena, or myself getting thrown out.

"Leo, stop, it's over." I looked up, my confusion passed, and stared at Terra, who I had conveniently landed next too. She smiled and threw Bell's pokeball into the arena. I sat up to watch the battle. Bell was facing a kirlia. I thought this is how the battle should have started since Bell was naturally resistant against everything, almost. The kirlia attacked first, a light pink aura, signifying psychic, surrounded Bell. Bell moved slightly, but was not effected by the attack. Bell charged, getting in close. The kirlia side-stepped, and when Bell was in front of her, used headbutt. Again it barely fazed Bell, she just turned and used take down. It was all it took to finish the kirlia. That is the down side to psychics. They have brilliant offense, but their defense is lacking.

"The challenger wins!" The referee called before walking back to his room. Again, Terra was about to call out to Jessica, but she simply started floating again. The Shield Town badge floated towards us. Terra snatched it out of the air and examined it, I looked too. It was a brain, surrounded in an orange aura. Terra said nothing else. Only when we were back outside did she jump in the air and give a little shout.

"Yahoo! Let's go get everyone healed, then we can move on." We ended up at the Pokemon Center, waiting for Ember to wake up. I glared at Monique, who was passing his hand through the space between XiD's head and shoulders. XiD was laughing his ass off.

"Would you cut that out?" I growled, "If you keep that up, XiD will die from lack of oxygen." XiD just laughed some more.

"Dijo dijo dijo, ghost pokemon can't die, dijo dijo dijo." Monique scribbled something on his clipboard. I sighed.

"What exactly do you write on that?" Monique looked up. He thought for a moment, then turned the clipboard to face me. All I could see on it were tiny, squiggled lines. I shook my head. "What is that? How do you write so small, and how do you read it?" He shrugged.

"They're haiku's, three-lined poems. They are a good way for me to keep my notes. Reading them is normal for me; it is how I've always written." I sighed and turned away, not wanting to talk to the lunatic any more.

When Ember was awake, I got up and left without a word. I hoped everyone followed, because I just didn't want to deal with the lunatic. But which one?

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I feel like, although this is six pages long, it is rushed. Oh well. Hope you enjoyed, and I hope it was worth the wait. Thanks for reading! Review!


	27. The Planes

Well, it's here. I must apologize. I have had this done for over a week, but between my job, my sisters, my brother, the Fourth of July, the World Cup, a social life, and getting a cat I haven't found the time to pass this through my editor and to you. Next chapter will be quicker, I promise, and if not I will be slapped repeatedly with fish. Okay, thank you FrostDeman, Anonymous1, Czar Lawrence III, Alex999139, iR4WR, Dragonfang20, and Pyrowolf for leaving reviews. I ask my readers to sign in, or make an account. You have awesome points and I would like to talk about them. So, on with the fic!

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**Leo**

Ember had refused to leave. She said she needed a day to be dry and happy before traveling again, and I had to agree. The Pokemon Center was over-booked, so we rented a room in a nice hotel near the gym. I wasn't there, I was walking around the town square. It was adorned with a fountain, and full of aspiring trainers. I was in a simple human form, nothing but the basics, like shorts and a T-shirt. The dome around the town acted as a greenhouse; it made the air warm and humid while keeping the weather out.

I was about to leave when I was stopped by shouting. I looked back and saw a pair of trainers near the fountain, glaring each other down. Around them, a crowd was beginning to form. Overcome by curiosity, I walked over. I callously pushed through the crowd and stopped at the edge of the circle.

"And I say that's bull shit!" A young man in a blue shirt screamed at another man. The former was rather ordinary, but his opponent caught my attention. He was an average height, six feet or so, pale, scrawny, and almost bored looking. He had shaggy blue hair, hanging over confident black eyes. Over his left cheek, he had a yellow bandage and in his mouth, a long-stemmed pipe. He wasn't wearing shoes. He wore a blue tunic loosely, and I could see bandages rapped around his stomach.

"Is not, you're just a sore loser. I can't believe he wanted to battle such a weak trainer." He sighed. His voice was soaked in indifference. The way he spoke showed he had heard this before.

"There's even more bull shit!" The trainer shrieked again, his voice cracking slightly. "How can a pokemon ask you to battle if it doesn't even speak? You don't even have a translator!" The older man shrugged.

"Don't be angry that I'm in greater touch with my pokemon than you are. It is neither mine, nor your fault that you're ignorant." He reached a hand inside his tunic and pulled out a small jumble of metal and wires. He closed his palms around it, cutting off my view. He picked at it as he talked. "I've spent long enough with Jengan to know what he wants. Once he stepped on the field, you didn't have a chance. Just go home kid, you lost." He opened his hands for the crowd to see a small metal pidgey. There was a collective gasp from the crowd as it took flight, then another as it exploded."Damn it, I thought it would work that time."

The younger trainer gritted his teeth and stomped forward. He stopped a foot in front of the man. "You're not even paying attention to my words!" He raged. I could see veins bulging from his head, his hands balled into tight fists at his sides. I tensed, feeling the rising heat between the two. I looked at the older man, hoping he would see what I did, and calm the fury of the boy.

He didn't. "Why would I pay for a product that has no value?" The younger trainer roared and pulled his fist back. I lunged forward and grabbed his wrist before he could complete the action. The man smiled.

I spoke loud enough to be heard. "I feel that's completely unnecessary. Rage is pointless. If you lost to this man, then it's because he's the better. If you don't like it, then go train. Be better and you won't have this problem again. I don't like you, mainly for the little stunt you just pulled, but also for who you are. You seem like the kind of person that uses his pokemon as tools. I warn you, I have violent tendencies around such people. If you would like to avoid an accident, I suggest you leave."I finished my speech and dropped the boys arm, which fell limp at his side. He looked at me nervously. I sniffed the air and looked down; the boy had a stain growing around his groin. He noticed. With one look at the man, he took off.

The crowd stared at me, but began to disperse. I sighed and turned to the man, who was grinning widely.

"I like you, you're interesting." He said. I laughed and patted him on the shoulder.

"Odd way to greet someone, but it isn't the first time I've heard it. Leo." I introduced myself and held out my hand. He took it and shook firmly.

"Well met, Leo. My name is Alphonso Rutledge Buchanan." I blinked.

"Interesting name. May I ask, what was the problem with the kid?" Alphonso sighed.

"It's the same thing every time." He said and shook his head.

"And what might that be?"

"My pokemon." He brushed his hair over his head. "My croagunk, specifically. He's smart, incredibly smart, and knows things he shouldn't. People always get mad because they feel cheated." I shook my head.

"I know the feeling. I've always known too much for my own good." I looked around. "Well, glad I could help, but I really must be going." I turned to look back at Alphonso, but he wasn't there. I saw him at the edge of the square, waving back. Smiling, I waved, turning to leave when I heard my name called. Glancing around, I saw Raina, in half-breed form, standing in the shadows of an alley. She beckoned me with a finger and disappeared.

I walked down the alley and saw no trace of her. I was about to dismiss it as my imagination when I saw the tips of her tails retreat behind a corner. I ran this time, hoping to catch her, but came up empty handed yet again. There was an intersection ahead of me. I watched it closely, looking for vanishing tails. I saw them go left and followed. I continued the chase through the shadows of the city, sticking to the alleys.

I was running now, trying my best to get to Raina, but somehow she eluded me. I was sprinting, following the elusive tails around another corner, when I was met with running's worst enemy, a wall.

I skidded to a stop, pressing my hands to the cool cement as brakes. I paused to catch my breath and looked around. Nothing. There were no windows, no doors, and no way out. I was about to admit to myself that I had finally gone crazy, when something hit my head. I looked up and saw Raina's tail's passing over the edge of the roof in a shower of gravel. I shielded my eyes and looked again. They were gone. I growled my annoyance and began scaling the walls. The alley was narrow, allowing me to jump back and forth between the walls and climb quickly.

When I reached the top, I grabbed the eave and pulled myself onto the flat roof. I rolled once and shot to my feet. I searched and found Raina standing on another building, several floors taller than the one I was on. She smiled down at me.

"You're getting slow, Bellrauthien."She called. I growled at the mention of my name. I didn't like that it brought back the memory of a particular conversation. I was about to tell Raina, but she began running again. Sighing, I took off after her. I used my stores of extreme strength to leap up onto the higher roof. When I landed, Raina was already dropping down onto the next building. I ran to the edge and watched her run for a moment. She had a long, loping stride. It reminded me of the leaping run that stantler used. When she reached the edge of the building she was on, she bunched her legs beneath her and sprang out. She landed on her hands, rolled, and continued running. I smiled. Dropping down, I ran after her.

She led me to the edge of the town, right to the barrier. She stopped, then and turned to me. I ran up to her and stopped. I immediately noticed she was serious. She had an air about her that meant she was teaching.

"It's been too long since we trained, Bellrauthien." I sighed.

"Please don't call me that. Call me Leo." She shook her head.

"Leo is not your name. Bellrauthien is, and I won't address you as anything different, around everyone else, maybe. But when we're alone, that's what I'll call you, or I'll use Raunien. Anything else is not fitting." I shook my head but relented.

"Could you at least tell me how you know? And, if I remember correctly, you said something about my parents. I want to know." She smiled, probably expecting this.

"Of course, but not here. Today we will learn to traverse the Plains of Existence." My eyes widened in surprise. In the labs where I grew up, the Plains of Existence were only a theory. But here I was, being given a free pass to see them. I grinned and nodded, as did Raina. "We'll be going to an elemental plane first; they are the easiest to reach."

"Which element?" I asked. Raina looked at me with a twinkle in her eye.

"Fire. To traverse planes, you must embrace their essence. You must focus on fire, every attribute of it, everything it represents. Close your eyes and imagine a flame. Embrace it, allow the heat to fill you and pull you into its dimension." I nodded and closed my eyes. I saw nothing at first. I focused on the element, bringing it to life. It started as a small glow, but soon it was a bright, roaring fireball. I expected it to be red, but the yellow tongues of fire said otherwise. I brought the flame closer, and I imagined myself encased in its burning center. Suddenly, I was surrounded with intense heat. It was no longer mental, but my fur burned with how hot the air was. I opened my eyes and looked around.

I gasped at the shifting, molten landscape. Everything was burning. The smell of sulfur was heavy, and it threatened to gag me. I was standing on a piece of black stone. It moved slowly across lava flowing just feet away from spurts of flame erupted from the surface, flashing into the black sky before dispersing. The heat was nearly unbearable, but I was determined to endure. All across the ocean of fire, other fire elementals floated on their own islands of rock. Across the sky, flew their flying brethren. I looked around, hoping to see Raina, but was met with something far more terrifying.

Rising from the magma was a huge shape. Molten rock cascaded off its sides, revealing a massive Heatran. Bits of rock, that probably weighed several tons, fell from his body. They crashed down in the molten sea and added to the effect just a little. His eyes were emotionless, staring me down as if I was a shrub in his path. When he spoke, ripples formed around his legs. His voice was deep and powerful, but at the same time strained, as if he was an old man.

"Welcome to my domain, Bellrauthien. I have been expecting you." I stared up into his calm eyes, confused.

"How could you have been waiting for me, and why?" Even when I yelled, I couldn't come close to the massive power that Heatran had.

He chuckled, causing small waves to form. "Has no one told you? Well, first let me tell you that I have a connection with all fire types, being as I control their domain. Every fire type you see around you, isn't really there. Our spirits are bound to this plane, but we may never be aware of it." I nodded.

"But what does this have to do with me?" Heatran laughed again, harder, and larger waves of lava began to rock my island.

"I guess you should know, especially if she hasn't told you yet." His eyes seemed to sparkle with amusement, the first thing I'd seen in that blank stare of his. "First, I am Raina's father. It is where she gets her power." I nodded, it made sense. "And second, she is-" He was cut off by a blinding light. I was forced to shove a hand to my face for protection. When it ceased I dared to peek.

Raina was standing next to me on my island, glaring up at her father, Heatran. She was fully ninetales, her true state, probably forced into it by this realm. When I looked at Heatran, he was smiling.

"Hello, Raina. What brings you home?" He rumbled. Raina glared up at him for another few seconds, but finally sighed and sat on her haunches.

"I'm fine, Father. I wanted to teach Bellrauthien here, I thought it would be enlightening. Besides, it has been a long time since I last saw the Sun." She smiled. I looked around and gasped.

"We're on the Sun?" I cut in. "I assumed we were in some sort of different dimension that was a volcano. The Sun?" Raina nodded.

"What you perceive as the planets, are really the separate realms of the elements. Mercury is the realm of rock and steel types. Venus is the realm of dragon types. Earth is the realm of normal types, fighting types, flying types, bug pokemon, and grass types, but encompasses all life. Mars is the realm of ground types. Jupiter is the realm of poison types. Saturn is the realm psychic types, but they also dominate the Moon. Uranus is the realm of electric types. Neptune is the realm of water and ice types, and Pluto is the realm of dark and ghost types." She counted them all off on her fingers as she went. She smiled when she finished. "There, I'm teaching you already." She turned to Heatran. "It was nice seeing you father, but it's time to go educate." Heatran nodded and began to sink back below the surface of the Sun. Before he was completely submerged, I could've sworn he winked at me.

When I looked back at Raina, she was looking across horizon. I walked next to her and looked out as well.

"What are we looking for?" I asked. She broke her trance and turned to me.

"Today we will be learning how to read thoughts, and it's easier to read the thoughts of spirits in their plane." She continued searching. I looked out as well. There were thousands, if not millions, of pokemon. As I looked through them, I began to notice more and more some that didn't look quite right. It seemed as if I was looking at them through a haze and couldn't get the real picture. I saw this several times before I thought to ask Raina.

"Why is it that some of the pokemon are difficult to see?" Raina turned to me again and smiled.

"I'm glad you asked. Come on." She took off and started running along the surface of the lava. I hesitated, but followed. Running wasn't harder, it was just... weird. The surface of the Sun gave slightly as you stepped on it. It was like trying to run on a trampoline that didn't want to bounce back.

I followed Raina to one of the hazy figures on a rock island, like I had been. As we got closer it became more defined, and it was when we stood beside it that I realized what it was.

"It's a half-breed." I said simply. I wasn't really surprised. A half-breed flareon was crouched in front of me. I couldn't see what it was crouched over, but it looked like it was eating.

"Yes," Raina said, "They are hazy because their pokemon half belongs here, but their human half is not welcome. It is for this reason that half-breeds are such outcasts. They don't really belong anywhere. We don't exactly have a half-breed legendary to rule their realm." I thought about that for a long time. It made a lot of sense.

"Why am I welcome here? I'm a half-breed after all. Heatran, your father, even said he was expecting me." I said. Raina sighed.

"You're... special. Your power allows you to visit all of the planes, though your greeting at the others might not be so friendly." The possibilities boggled my mind. I shook it off for now. We had come for a reason.

"So, how do you read minds?" I asked. Raina smiled and closed her eyes.

"Concentrate and extend your consciousness toward your target. It's really very simple." She said almost in a trance. I closed my eyes and followed her example. I pictured flareon, I imagined myself in its position. I tried to picture what it was eating, rattata maybe, or a pidgey.

Suddenly, I felt extremely dizzy. I could feel myself falling, and hear Raina call out to me. It was like I was falling asleep faster then I could fight.

When I opened my eyes I was no longer on the Sun. I was in a small room. I tried to look around, but I couldn't move. I began to panic. From what I could see I was in a cage. In front of me was a bowel of some sickly slime. I was even more terrified to see my hand scooping some of the disgusting fluid towards my mouth. My hand... was red.

The realization hit me hard. I wasn't in my own body. I was seeing what the flareon saw. Along with the realization cam a flood of thoughts that weren't my own.

_...This is disgusting, but I'm so hungry. How long have I been here? Where is here? I miss my family. Why can't I melt these bars? This is disgusting..._

Images came along with the thoughts. I saw his troubles, his hopes, his fears, and it made me angry. He was captured by someone for who knows what purpose, and was dragged away from a life he had. He was probably going to become a test subject, a machine that they, who ever _they_ were, thought they could just tinker with until it worked how they wanted it too. It made me want to scream, and I did. I released my anger in a mental curse. It was strong, and apparently it didn't go unnoticed. The flareon had stopped eating and was looking around.

_What was that? I could have sworn someone just screamed. Maybe it was just my imagination._

He went back to eating, but I realized I could speak with him. I decided it was worth a try.

"Hello?" I called out. I tried to say it aloud, hoping it would carry better, and maybe he would hear it. He did.

_I definitely heard something that time._

"Hello? Who are you?" I asked. The flareon shot up. It looked around frantically.

_Something is wrong,_ It thought, _every time someone comes in here, they echo. Why isn't there an echo?_

"Listen," I said calmly, "I'm not in the room. My name is Leo, and I want to help you." He didn't listen. He began screaming.

"_Get out of my head! Get out of my head!"_ The power of it forced me to clamp down on my own mental identity, or else I might have lost myself in his mind. He became more forceful, and soon his screams deteriorated into unintelligible wailing. I lost my connection with his senses and was left floating in a sea of black screams.

It seemed eternity before the screams began to take shape again. I could hear my name in them, and I threw myself at the sound. Senses slowly came back to me. I felt intense heat first. Then direction returned, and I found myself lying on my back. I could smell and taste sulfur, and it forced me to cough. I heard Raina's voice, and it became my focal point.

"Leo! Leo, oh thank Arceus you're alive. Leo. Leo! Speak to me Leo!" I opened my eyes and was greeted by the intense light that was the Sun.

"Raina?" I coughed out, "What happened?" She sighed with relief and started petting my head. I hadn't realized before my head was in her lap. I looked up into her face and realized something else. "You're in your half-breed form." She laughed.

"You notice the strangest things Leo." She smiled, and I smiled back.

"You're calling me Leo." She laughed again and nodded. We stayed like that for a time, her petting my head, and me wheezing.

"What happened..."

She said distantly, "That's a good question. You were concentrating, then you just collapsed. You weren't breathing, I thought you were dead." A tear rolled down her cheek, but she wiped it away and composed herself. "So the question is yours. What happened?" I looked at her face.

"I saw what the flareon saw." She sighed and shook her head. "What's wrong?" I asked.

She smiled. "You're growing by leaps and bounds. What you did was mental transference, the actual movement of your consciousness to another living creatures. It comes after mind reading." I laughed, coughed, and laughed some more.

"Well," I said, "I learned something today, and that's that I need sleep." I laughed with Raina.

"Fine, sleep. When you wake up we'll be home." I nodded and closed my eyes. As I drifted off I heard Raina humming. It was an eerily familiar tune, and it calmed my mind. It faintly reminded me of my much more pleasant childhood.

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Couple interesting things in that. Lots to review on. Again I apologize for my lateness, next chapter will be soon. Like, Friday. Thanks for reading, please review!


	28. Strumming Harsh Chrods

It is here as promised! I opened a poll that may decide my writing carrier, so check that out after reading. Thank you Czar Lawrence, Dragonfang20, iR4WR. Anonymous1, BisyLizzie, shiny eevee4, and Frost Deman for reviewing. On with the fic!

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**Leo**

We started early, heading north out of Shield town. We were out early enough that the rain had yet to begin to fall. We knew it was just a matter of time though. As we marched on I started to get curious about the Planes. Raina had explained very little beyond their very existence.

"_Raina, how is it we traverse the Planes?"_ I spoke telepathically to keep our conversation private. Her ears raised, but other than that she gave no indication she had heard me.

"_Our spirits are bound to the Plane that matches our element."_ She explained, _"In a sense, we are always there, but not always truly _there_. Do you understand?"_ I shook my head and sighed.

"_Not even a little. I understand our spirit is basically born on the Plane that houses our element, but why is it that some pokemon never realize that they are connected to this separate world? On top of that, how can Earth be a Plane, wouldn't we be able to see the spirits? Furthermore, how can I be able to traverse all the Planes, yet my dominant element is electricity?"_ Everyone stared as Raina randomly threw her hands in the air and growled in frustration. She took a quick look around and covered herself.

"I can feel the rain coming already." Everyone sighed their agreement and Raina continued mentally. _"You have more questions than a newborn cub, I swear to Arceus. I'm not a miracle worker, I'll tackle them one at a time. First, why some pokemon never realize they are connected to a Plane. The main reason is that they are not psychic pokemon. Psychic-types can naturally feel the invisible chord that connects them to their Plane. Other types need to know it exists before they can feel any kind of connection, and even then it isn't strong enough to travel to the Plane. With me so far?"_

I nodded. _"Then why am I not able to feel a connection to any Plane right now?"_

"_It is because you can enter all the Planes. You don't have a specific bond with a single one. Next question."_ She said this with finality, cutting off another of my questions. "_Okay, how Earth can be a Plane. Think about it. The spirit of a person follows there actions. We can't see a person's spirit because it is moving with them because it is them. That is why psychic pokemon have such control over those of this Plane, they can directly control their spirits easily. It is also the reason humans can have an out of body experience. If you focus and separate your spirit from your body, you would more clearly see the spirits of others. In that way, Earth is still a Plane."_ I nodded, satisfied with the answer.

"_And my last question? How can I enter all the Planes when my dominant element is electricity?"_ I saw it as a legitimate question, but Raina just sighed again.

"_You really can't figure it out?"_ I shook my head. _"Your going to slap yourself when you hear this. It is because you can change shape."_ I slapped my self across the face. Everyone stared at me, but I ignored them. It was so obvious! I would have slapped myself again, but Terra slowed to walk beside me.

"Are you alright?" She asked, concern in her voice. I smiled down at her.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just thinking about our next gym, it's starting to bother me a little." She turned away to dig in her backpack. I looked at Raina. When she saw me, I nodded my thanks. I looked back at Terra and found her punching buttons on her pokedex.

"The next gym is in... Solid City. Notable features: buildings made of solid steel, and it surrounds an iron works. It is often the location for a search for steel-types. They are almost as common as on Iron Island. Interesting." She pushed some more buttons. "The Gym Leader is named Norton Rugby. That's all it says. It's safe to assume he's a steel-type trainer though, so Ember will mop the floor with him!" Terra threw fist in the air. I took the opportunity to reach to her side and tickle her. She shrieked and tried to wiggle away, I smiled and pulled her close. I rested my chin on her head and inhaled deeply, absorbing the fresh scent still lingering from her shower this morning. I sighed contentedly, and almost relaxed.

"Interesting, so you two have formed a relationship, then?" I let go of Terra, turned and saw Monique, and cocked my fist back in one clean motion. Monique was scribbling on his clipboard.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't send you flying." Monique straightened his Sublime T-shirt, and brushed off his faded jeans. Then he spun around, pulled his guitar out of nowhere, strummed a chord, and took a pose, all in one clean motion. Bastard.

He grinned. "Cause I look so good." I growled and let my fist go. It hit him square in the jaw. He was airborne for several seconds before landing maybe ten feet down the path.

"Don't ever top my spinning and multi-action combo!" In response he just stood up, brushed himself off again, and scribbled something on that overcrowded clipboard. "Arceus, I really hate him." I complained as we started walking again. Terra rubbed my arm soothingly. I sighed and draped it across her shoulders.

"You really just need to relax." She said, "You're living with too much pressure. If you don't let some go, you're going to collapse." As I watched Monique stalking Aditi with a needle, I had to disagree.

"That's easy enough for you to say, you're not constantly under threat of experimentation." I chuckled lightly as Scar kicked Monique in the back. "He's really more of a menace than anything."

Terra sighed, "I still say you're just tense. And this constant rain isn't making things any better." I looked up and thought for a moment.

"Hey, everybody!" Everyone stopped walking to turn to me. "This rain is getting really heavy, and we're not going to reach the next city today. Let's make camp and hope it's clearer tomorrow." Everyone nodded their agreement and moved off the road. Under the trees we had more protection, but it wasn't until we had found our way under a wayward pine that everyone was able to relax and set up camp. In minutes we had a small fire and food cooking. I was relaxing against the trunk of the tree when Monique walked up to me. I ignored him, but he sat next to me anyway.

"So, why do you and Terra get along so well?" The question caught me off guard. I was well prepared to deflect any probes about testing, or my genetic code, but he was asking about my relationship?

"Why? What's it to you?" He shrugged.

"I have my reasons. How do you two get along so well?" I thought about it for a moment.

"I guess it's just that we're very alike. And she saved me from dying, that's definitely a plus." Monique nodded and pulled his guitar in front of him. I was flustered for a moment because I didn't see where it came from. This man is just full of surprises. He began to play an intricate set of notes, plucking different strings, and pressing different frets. It was too quick to follow.

"Hey," I asked, "Do you think you could teach me how to play?" When he looked up, he kept playing. He simply nodded and slowed the rhythm down to something I could follow. His left hand, on the neck of the guitar, moved up a single fret and up a string with each movement, while his right hand, on the strings, plucked on each new fret.

"These are called scales," He explained, "They are the corner stone of everything you would ever play on the guitar." He stopped playing and passed the guitar to me. "Here, left hand on the neck, right hand on the strings. This is the light E string. Now, put your left index finger on the sixth fret, the spaces between the metal bars. Simply pluck the E string. Now move up a fret and a string. There, you're playing scales." He showed me everything, how to position my hands, how to pluck the string, he even showed me a simple way to switch strings by using different fingers. Through it I caught myself smiling. I looked up at Terra and found her smiling as well. I did my best to tell her to not say 'I told you so.'

"You know Monique," I said, turning back to the guitarist, "You're not as bad as I thought." He grinned.

"I'm not a two-dimensional person. What you see is not what you get. Now, if I could get a blood sample?" I jokingly shoved him away.

"Get the hell away from me!" We both shared a laugh, and he continued to teach me more about the guitar.

I learned a lot that night. How to tighten the strings, how to do complex chords, how to string them together, simple songs, and by the end of it all, I was sitting there playing a lullaby I had made myself. By now everyone else was asleep, but I was too thrilled by discovery to sleep. I quietly put Monique's guitar back in its case and crept out into the night. It wasn't raining, but the ground was covered in a heavy fog.

I walked slowly, careful not trip over any invisible obstacles. I kept walking until I found a tall oak. It was surrounded by pine trees, but towered above them, at least sixty feet in the air. I looked up into its shadowy world. The first branch was ten feet above my head. I backed away from the trunk and crouched. With a burst I ran at the tree. I jumped and planted my foot against the trunk. Pushing off, I grabbed hold of the branch. I swung my legs and vaulted off, landing on my feet on the next branch up. Without pause, I lunged to the next, catching it with my hands. I continued up until I was near the top. I was five feet from the peak, but all possible branches got too weak to hold me at that point.

From there I could see well across the forest. The wind picked up and the surrounding pines swayed in unison. Waves of green washed in the white light of the moon. It was mesmerizing. It held my attention so well I didn't notice the figure standing on a branch on the other side of the tree trunk. I jumped when his deep voice broke the night's calm.

"It's peaceful, isn't it?" It was non-threatening. I pride myself in being able to read voices, but I didn't drop my guard. Too many voices are just as gentle when their driving a knife between your ribs.

"It is." I said simply. I couldn't see the man's face, it was shrouded in shadow from where I was sitting. "Who are you?" I heard him chuckle.

"Right to the point, eh? Well sorry to disappoint, but I don't just give out my name." I nodded at the sense of it.

"Then may I know why your here?" The man chuckle again.

"Oh, you'll find out soon enough." He pointed straight up, and, being the fool I am, my eyes followed his hand to see the bright, crescent moon. I looked at it for only a moment, but when I brought my head back down the figure was gone. I breathed a sigh of relief knowing he wasn't a threat, but I was still curious.

I stayed on the tree for a little while longer, enjoying the scenery. Just when I was about to turn in, I was hit with a powerful gust of air. It knocked me of balance, but I was able to recover.

"Aww, I thought he would fall!" I recognized the overly happy child's voice all too quickly.

"Nera Giagro." I growled the name between gritted teeth. The winged girl floated from behind the nearest pine. "Where's your cousin? Don't you two usually travel together?" Nera giggled.

"Oh, he's here." She giggled again. I was about to leap out when the tree started to shake. I was mid-leap when it caught me off guard. This time there was no recovery. I saw a limb in front of me and threw my arms out. It wasn't enough.

My stomach was turning as I fell. I kept my arms extended, and I was jerked into a hasty swing as they caught a branch twenty feet from the bottom. I swung around it once before launching myself into the air like a gymnast. As I flew I caught a glimpse of Troy staring up at me, but my real objective was floating feet above me. I pointed one fist and fired a thunderbolt. My shot went wide of Nera, and hit a tree nearby. The top was cut clean off and began to fall. Nera was smart enough to get out of the way, but Troy, who was running to get beneath me, stopped to stare. When I landed form my flip I was in front of him. He was still staring at the tree, so I took the opportunity. I grabbed both his shoulders, stuck my foot in his groin, and dropped to the ground. Gravity pulled the big morph above me. I used the momentum to carry him through and kicked him behind me. The throw placed him beneath the falling treetop.

It fell with the loud sounds of snapping and popping branches. Nera was stunned by the feat, and I used the extra time to hit her with a thunderbolt. While both were distracted, I ran. I knew better than to run back to camp, they would most likely follow me. Instead I ran a seemingly random path through the trees. In my mind I had a mental map. I was slowly zig-zagging towards camp. When I felt I was maybe a hundred feet away I started circling around. I spiraled out from where I felt the camp was, increasing the size of my circle incrementally. After maybe fifteen minutes, when I was secure that I had made a sufficiently large perimeter, I stopped. I was hardly out of breath from the running.

I quickly located the tallest tree in the area. I quickly scaled it and got my bearings. In the distance I could see Nera's glittering wings. I was happy to see them fluttering around without direction. Contented I dropped to the forest floor and ran another zig-zag towards camp. When I reached our camps wayward pine I climbed it, being silent so as not to wake the others. At the top I scanned the horizon. I could still see Nera, but she was much farther than before. Happy with the confusion I had caused I slowly lowered myself back to camp. With a heavy sigh from a busy night I collapsed next to Terra. She stirred slightly, but didn't wake up. I wrapped a protective arm around her and lay there. I didn't sleep. I kept my ears open for the sounds of approaching feet, wings, anything.

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Rmember I got a poll that is kinda important to me, you'll see if you check it out. Sorry this is kinda short, but I crammed it to make the deadline I promised you. Thanks for reading, review please!


	29. Just a Dream

Surprise, this isn't the real chapter! Well, sorta, this is an old one-shot I wrote about Leo and Terra before I had started Black Butterflies. Because I haven't updated in too long, I modified to to match the current story, and that is what you are about to read. Sorry if it isn't perfect, my editor hasn't been online since I finished it, so there may be a few errors here and there. Ok, thank you FrostDeman, Dragonfang20, shiny eevee4, iR4WR, Czar Lawrence III, Maddenwars, and AnimeKing1143 for reviewing. Honorable mention! If you guys checked out my poll, you'll know that I asked you, the readers, if you wanted to try one of my numerous story ideas. Someone has answered the call! So, go check out iR4WR's story, Love Bites, so far it is a well-written, and intriguing tale. In other news, FrostDeman and I have started a story together. We will tell you more when we know more. I have more to say, but I'll wait, on with the fic!

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**Leo**

I woke up slowly, shaking my head to rid myself of a heavy blanket of exhaustion. I felt something catch around my neck, but ignored it. I groaned when my head suddenly throbbed from a point centered on my forehead. I tried to lift my hand to rub the sore spot behind my ears, but quickly discovered my arms bound. The sharp pain in my wrists brought the previous night's events back with startling clarity. I closed my eyes, sifting my memories for an answer.

_It was maybe four in the morning. My vigilance had proven unnecessary, for not even the wind stirred. I could see the light pink of morning sunshine between the branches of the pine. I sighed and let myself relax, slumping forward to get at least a few hours of much needed sleep. I heard laughing, soft and faint, that barely caught my attention. I looked up and then it hit me, literally._

'It' being Troy holding a baseball bat.

And now here I was. Chained to the floor, forced on my knees. I looked at my hands. Thick steel chain, too short to allow me to stand, hand cuffs, and rubber restraints. Smart. I couldn't see my neck, for obvious reasons, but it most likely had a rubber collar of some kind around it. My clothes were intact, for once. I didn't feel, or see, any injuries beyond my head, so I settled in to wait for someone to check up on me, as they always do. They never seem to think that the hostage just MIGHT take advantage of a lazy guard, just MIGHT get a hold of some keys, just MIGHT come kill them. Not my fault, but it definitely makes things easier for me.

I tried looking around for an advantage of any kind, but I could see nothing beyond a thick, red curtain. As I sat waiting, my mind began to speculate all the possible scenarios.

The curtain implied that they were either keeping me from seeing something, or keeping something from seeing me. My first guess was that they were auctioning me, but there is always so much noise at an auction. People chatting, bidding, the auctioneer himself. It would have been plainly obvious. But the fact they were using a curtain led me to believe they were hiding me from something or someone. If they wanted to keep me from seeing something, they could have thrown me in a cage, or a jail cell, but a curtain? It also showed class, because if these were simple people I was dealing with, they would have indeed, no matter what the reason, just thrown me in a cell. The curtain made things seem more important. Maybe I was at a circus, or a freak show? But, again, it was far too quiet. What else?

Hours passed as I let my mind wander to greater, and stranger, possibilities. Eventually I grew bored of it. Then I realized that through all my ideas I had used 'they,' and 'them.' I had no idea who 'they' were. I quickly latched on to the thought to keep my sanity.

Again I thought of the curtain. It implied that whoever had me wanted to put on a show. It had the inaudible message of power and arrogance. Yet the restraints showed they were cautious. I immediately thought of Giovanni. Troy and Nera did say he wanted me back. Won't he ever learn that he can't control genetic experiments? Besides Giovanni, though, it could be any number of powerful politicians wanting protection. I also couldn't leave Silph out. Those bastards will probably never stop looking for me.

My thoughts were free to roam, and more hours passed. They should have at least, by my reckoning. But, then again, I had no real way of telling time in my cloth prison. I was surprised when no one came to see me. It's like they didn't even care for me!

It wasn't for another few hours when they would send a guard. The man was heavy set. He had the basic black uniform, Kevlar vest, and even a nice hat. He wore a dark grimace, like he detested the very sight of me. His muscle mass gave the impression he was a stupid brute, but I could see the twinkle of intelligence in his eyes. I gave a big grin, trying to look funny, to unnerve him.

"Howdy, there." I laughed. "I was beginning to think you had forgotten about me. So, what's the word? Am I to be executed? Sold? Raped, hopefully not by you?" I laughed again. His disposition shifted from confident to confused. "What's the matter? Skitty got your tongue? Or did the higher ups say not to speak to me? Above your pay grade? I promise I won't tell." To prove it I locked my lips together tight. "Hmm, hm hm hmm, hmmmm?" I laughed again, louder this time. The big person took a step back, brushing the curtain.

"No... I am to bring you food." His voice shook slightly, and his face was pale. He pushed a hand behind the curtain and brought back a small cart. I was surprised to see more than bread and water. Trays were filled with fish, and steak, shellder, and caviare. There was a bottle of wine and two glasses. I faked a gasp of surprise and delight.

"Well, champ! Are you gonna eat dinner with me? That is so kind of you! You know, if you play your cards right, it may not have to be rape." I was making myself uncomfortable, but result was worth the sacrifice. The guard was sweating now, and unwilling to get to close to me.

"I'm not gay." He said simply. I grinned, snagging the chance to scare him more.

"Well, neither am I, but I'm special. Watch." I started to change myself. The image I had in mind was a tall, blond lady I had seen in Shield Town. She was pretty, but not beautiful. To make the image so, I added Aditi's curves. The effect was astonishing, or so I judged form the man's reaction. He jumped back several feet, hitting the curtain and nearly tripping. I tried to smile seductively. To scare the guy further, I didn't change my voice. When the attractive young woman spoke, it was my deep, man's voice. "Come here and feed me, I get so hungry." I licked my lips, still giving him a seductive stare. The man lasted no longer, he ran from out of the curtains. I smiled and changed back.

The whole thing left me feeling dirty. Mostly because it was just plain sick. The only problem was now I was left in an enclosed space, hungry, with a cart full of food in front of me. I sighed and continued to wait. It was only twenty minutes before another person came in, this time a woman. She was wearing a gray suit with matching mini-skirt. Pantyhose gave her legs an unnaturally dark shade that didn't match the rest of her skin. Her platinum blonde hair was pinned into a tight bun. She was young, maybe thirty, and wore a pair of simple, frame less glasses. She refused to smile as she dragged a metal chair in behind her. Sitting, she picked up a fork and began eating, right in front of me. I tried my original tactic, to unnerve her to the point of leaving, or maybe giving me food.

"Hello, beautiful. Sorry, but I believe you have mistaken that food for yours. You see, it was meant for me. Would you be so kind as to pass the lobster?" She only paused in her chewing to think for a moment, then she smiled an picked up the lobster. With a flick of her wrist she broke it's shell. She smiled wider and placed in on her plate. Taking a bite, she moaned at the taste. I frowned and nodded.

"I get it now. Silent torture. Your going to sit here and eat in front of me. Yes, I am hungry. No, I will not give in. Eventually I will escape. It is not a matter of if, but when. When I escape I will take you. I will take you to a desolate place, completely uninhabited by humans. There, I will rape, repeatedly. Then I will leave you for a week. You will get water, but not food. For, you see, the human body can only live for maybe three days without water, but it can go two weeks without food. I will give you water, but no food, for a week. Then I will do as your doing now. You will watch me eat. Then I will leave. At the end of the second week I will come back. I will give you Pokechow, just enough to fill your stomach, and I will eat in front of you again. Then I will do it again, and again, and again, until you die. So, for now, enjoy your meal." I grinned again, now more sadistic. The woman had stopped eating. Just like the man, she was pale, and I could see the fork, still in her grip, shaking slightly. Abruptly she stood and left.

"I'll see you later!" I called after her. I sighed. I didn't really mean what I was telling these people, but it was necessary to set them off balance, to give myself an edge. I looked up at the cart of food with longing. It was closer, but not close enough to reach. I sighed but settled in again.

Another ten minutes passed and a very angry man in a black suit came into the curtain. I grinned, and was about to launch into my spiel when he cut me off.

"How dare you! You think you can seduce my guards and threaten my agents? You have no right! I should kill you right now, but your worth more than it would cost to clean up the mess." He snorted when he finished, showing his disdain for me. I only grinned wider.

"And who do I have the pleasure of having an audience with?" He snorted again. He walked over to the food and threw a plate at me. It clattered to the ground, spilling the rice it held. I stared at it for a moment before shrugging and eating what had stayed on the plate. The man sat in the seat the woman had brought in.

"Shut up. I am the CEO of Silph, Richard Carlisle. You will treat me with the respect I have worked for and earned." I stopped eating and smiled, grains of white sticking to my cheeks.

"Oh, the head hancho, then?" I chuckled, "Good, I was planning on eliminating you eventually, this just makes it easier." Richard didn't even blink. He sighed and shook his head.

"You really don't understand your current situation, do you?" I nodded.

"Of course I do! I am chained down at the wrists with three inch steel chain, each wrist has a rubber lock to negate my electrical attacks. I am also wearing a collar, also rubber, by the feel of it. I am inside a curtain inside a ultra high security room, which is inside a Silph building somewhere. Nera and Troy Giagro brought me here as a way point on their course to Giovanni, who I hear is after me. You are attempting to keep me again. You want me to be the weapon you made me to be. And if that fails, you'll probably kill me. Was I right?" Richard chuckled and nodded.

"I must say, that is impressive, but you forgot the ten auto-turrets surrounding you should you attempt escape. Nera and Troy are dead, killed them when they brought you. And the collar neutralizes all pokemon attacks, not just your electric. That is also chained to the ground behind you, so you can't lunge at me. Did _I_ forget anything?" He smiled with confidence. Grinning right back I nodded.

"You forgot that every creature has the capacity to grow, mentally and physically. I am stronger than before, as well as smarter, and I have learned a few new tricks. I know that those auto-turrets will be shut off so you can safely leave the room. They aren't a threat. I also know that they have a thirty second warm-up time, so even if you alerted the guards, I would have more than enough time to escape. Can I kill you now, or do want to continue this little game?" Richard smiled.

"You are indeed intelligent, but strong enough to break three inch reinforced steel chain? Doubtful."

"Not as I am, " I explained, "But I have learned much in my time away from you." I began to change. I decided on something intimidating. I changed into Groudon, full-size and powerful. As my arms grew the restraints broke, unable to contain my new mass. In my new shape I roared my triumph and looked down at the puny man. He was clapping. Slow and steady.

"Impressive, 02234. But you wouldn't dare." I narrowed my eyes and raised a massive claw above his head.

"Try me." I threatened, my voice was much deeper. A roaring thunderstorm. Richard lifted his left hand and snapped. I looked around as the curtain lifted. The room was solid gray concrete, a security room, as I had thought. Turrets were indeed spread around the room, set pointing towards me. I growled down at Richard, unimpressed. "I told you, your guns don't scare me." In response he merely pointed off to his right. I looked at him suspiciously, but followed his arm to a large window. Through it I could see nothing but black. I looked back at Richard, confused.

"Sorry," He said, "Light!" The blackness evaporated into a torture chamber. I had seen many of them in my time, but what I saw now drew my concentration and forced me back to my original state.

Lined up was my group. Terra, Raina, XiD, everyone was strapped down to a wooden table. I looked upon each of them, lingering longer on Terra. I stared into the cold grin of the CEO.

"You see, don't you?" He chuckled, "You will work for us, or we won't kill them."

"What do you mean by 'won't kill them'? That sounds pretty good to me." Richard just shook his head.

"We will torture them, endlessly. We will constantly switch out their torturers every four hours, so they can be tortured twenty-four hours a day. If you escape, and we decide torturing them isn't worth the effort, we will use them for our experiments. You know exactly how we experiment." His cold grin was disturbing me. I knew what he was talking about. He would hold good to his threats. I looked along the line of people again. As my eyes ran across XiD I froze.

I had already guessed this was a one sided mirror. I could see them, but they couldn't se me. But as I looked directly into XiD's eyes I thought otherwise. I stared at him for a long time before Richard snapped his finger, drawing my attention to him.

"It is one-sided. They can't see you." I looked back at XiD. He was smiling. Not his hurt filled, tortured-soul smile, but a mischievous, I-have-got-something-planned smile. I reached out mentally and immediately picked up his mind.

"_Sneak is out."_ That was all he said before his head dropped and our link was severed. I thought about what he meant, and was given the answer almost immediately. An agent kicked in the door. He was dressed the same as the woman was, except with pants. His eyes were emotionless, and he wore a gray bandana that covered his hair and forehead. When he spoke, the monotone drone confirmed my suspicions.

"Sir, we have a matter that requires your attention." His gaze shifted between myself and the CEO. "Immediately." Sneak then left, not giving Richard the chance to object. He cursed under his breath and glared at me.

"Remember what I told you, _Leo_, or they will pay the price." He jabbed a finger in the windows direction. I growled, but said nothing. With a final snort of distaste he left. I immediately began working my wrists. There is a certain trick to shackles, first discovered and practiced by Harry Houdini, they don't automatically adjust. It basically means that if they fit your hands into them, you can get them out. It really isn't a problem for someone like me, because I was made strong, which in turn made me muscular. Having an extra layer of muscle can be helpful, because it means that my wrists are actually thicker, thick enough to be nearly the same size as my hands when they were compressed. With a lot of wiggling I had my right hand free, soon followed by my left. The heavy chains fell to the concrete with a heavy clunk. I reached up to my throat, feeling my way around the collar. It felt seamless, like it wasn't put there, it just was. I growled as I dug my hands under the metal, scratching the skin of my neck and limiting my oxygen. With a small grunt I snapped it. Sparks leaped between the broken ends as I tossed the device to the floor.

With that done, I looked around, at the floor. I assumed the automatic guns had been activated, and was looking for their trigger. Around where I was held there was a dark yellow circle. I knew this to be a safety zone. Prisoners were often thrown into these rooms and told to stand inside the circles. It was torture in the way that a person could either choose to stay in the confined space, or get shot to death. The circled marked the edges of the sentry guns' range. Another glance and I had the distance I was from each mounted gun. Focusing, I used agility to slow the world around me. Taking a deep breath I ran at the window. With the guns being slower than me, they didn't turn with me, as they were supposed to, but followed my trail. No matter how fast I was, bullets were still faster, so I had to be careful. I stood in front of the window for brief second. The guns pointed at me and fired a single shot before I was moving again. The combined ten shots caused spider web cracks to spread across the shiny glass surface. Needing no more from them, I ran around the circle of guns, pulling important cables, and shutting each of them down. When I finished I stood in the center of the room, facing the cracked glass.

I ran at it full force. Half-way there, I jumped and extended my leg. I drove the flying kick through the weakened glass and landed on the opposite side. The guard watching the room was surprised, just enough to allow me to knock him out with electricity before he raised an alarm. Everyone was surprised to see me, to say the least. I grinned wide, trying to set there worries at ease.

"Did ya miss me?" I asked nonchalantly as I undid their straps. When I released Terra she wrapped me in a warm hug. I would have stayed like that, but someone is a mood kill.

"Dijo dijo dijo, not that I object lovey-dovey shit in a hostile environment, but I do. Lets go." XiD grinned and held open the door like a valet. I clapped him on the shoulder as I walked by, silently thanking him for the tip-off about Sneak. I took the lead, taking our group through the maze of hallways.

I recognized the structure of the building, it's floor plan being very similar to the facility I had escaped, but I just assumed it was easier to use one design rather than hundreds. We were currently in the 'Persuasion Wing', where patients, and anybody captured were interrogated and tortured, then often killed. I had spent many hours in this wing, working, and knew my way to the central plaza. We passed several guards on the way through the hallways, but a cold glare, and Richard Carlisle's name, were enough to avoid questions.

When we reached the central plaza, basically a circle that several hallways connected too, I had a horrible feeling of deja vu. I could se scorch marks on the ground, and a large black ring coming from a door to my right. When I had entered I stopped dead in my tracks, forcing Terra and a few others to run into me.

"Leo?" Terra asked, "What's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost, and not XiD."

"Dijo dijo dijo, but seriously, what is it. I've never seen you so panicky." I looked back at them, but said nothing. I had nothing to say. With long strides I walked to the door with the scorch mark around it. I paused with my hand on the handle. I took a deep breath and thrust open the door.

When I looked in it was completely dark, an unnatural black not even found on moonless nights. Then a single beam of light illuminated a column. I screamed.

**Terra**

I was shaken awake by Leo, screaming his head off. I immediately leapt to my feet and looked around. I saw nothing under the branches of our tree shelter. I looked back at Leo, who had stopped screaming. He was holding his head in his hands, eyes wide, muttering something. I couldn't hear it, but I could tell it was the same thing. As I moved closer I could hear more clearly.

"He's back, he's alive. He's back, he's alive. He's back, he's alive." He just kept repeating it. Everyone else was awake now, too. They were all staring at Leo. He had never acted like this before. I had enough of it, I grabbed him by the shoulders and turned him toward me. His eyes refocused, and for a moment he had a look of sheer terror, then quiet fear.

"Leo" I said soothingly, "What is wrong? Who is back?" He stayed silent, staring past me. He was looking right at me, but he wasn't really seeing me. Suddenly, as if he had remembered something important, his had snapped towards me, his eyes refocused again. He looked at me with so much fright that he reminded me of a small child who just had a bad nightmare. The words that came out of his mouth were barely a whisper, but they chilled me like nothing else could.

"My father. My father is alive."

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So, the rest of my news. I will being taking atwo week vacation starting tomorrow. Now, I know what your all thinking. "But, Gala, you just delayed another new chapter, how can you do this to us?" or something like that. Don't worry, though, this will be a working vacation. I promise you that I will have TWO new chapters on my return. I always do my best to keep my promises. Thanks for reading! Now go fucking review!


	30. I am Your Master

Hello, FanFiction! I'm back, and happy to be so! How is everybody? I assume good, no one has sent death threats to me. Thank you Czar Lawrence III, Dragonfang20, iR4WR, Maddenwars, Yakolev, Alex99139, Leoni, FrostDeman, flarafeon, and Relaji for reviewing, you guys, and girls, are awesome. I've started I'm going to have a 'Special mentions' section for good stories I find that would otherwise go unnoticed. So check out this chapter's.

**Special mentions:** While I was away I was kept entertained by several amazing stories form my readers, but a few stood out among the rest. Retribution, by Relaji, is an enthralling and incredibly well written story, anyone here will love it. First Contact, by Yakolev is an interesting, well thought out, and strangely relatable tale. Love Bites, by iR4WR, is devoloping into a complicated story of heart break and danger, I like it. And all of Czar's stories are good, of course. I suggest Retribution first, it is way up there in quality. Relaji is a great writer who needs reviews, go do that.

Chapter 31 will follow this one in a few hours, while you wait you can go check out my special mentions, cause there awesome and deserve some attention. On with the fic!

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**Terra**

We've been walking all day, and Leo has yet to say a word beyond this morning's outburst. His startling declaration left me a little shaken. We all knew about Leo's father, even Monique had been filled in during our march. Several questions still haunted me though.

How could he have survived, and how did Leo know? The possibilities it arose were mind boggling. I can only hope Leo's wrong.

Fat chance. Leo's never wrong.

**Five**

"Is he ready? Have you made enough?" I asked the scientist. He looked over his shoulder and nodded. I let my grin grow, allowing it to stretch impossibly wide. I laughed when the scientist, I believe his name was Bill, shuddered.

I looked down at the small jar, filled with a sickly green, glowing liquid. Floating in the disgusting substance was something even more vile. A grotesque, misshapen brain was being formed in the goo. Although it was hideous, I saw the organ as a thing of dark beauty.

For the past six months, since 02234 escaped, we, Silph, have been rebuilding. It wasn't easy, and progress was often slow, but the mass of tissue in front of me is testament to our achievements.

Although it doesn't look like much, in fact it looks like a waste of resources, the brain is of vital importance. Not much remained that was salvageable, but enough has been regenerated to fuse with a second brain, preferably in a living host.

Bill pushed a few buttons on the machine holding the precious monstrosity and nodded again. "Alright," he said, "Enough is here to be usable. Who will it be put inside?" Bill looked at me. I stared back and flashed another smile.

"Myself." I told him quietly. Bill didn't look surprised. He walked into another room. When I followed, I found myself in a room devoid of anything save what appeared to be an old barber's chair. Bill gestured for me to sit. Metal restraints wrapped around my wrists when I complied. I accepted it, knowing it was necessary.

"When you wake up... don't go crazy." Bill was saying. I looked at him like _he_ had gone crazy. "The second consciousness inside your head will try to take control. Don't let it. If it does, you will lose yourself to it. Your mental control will be destroyed and you will be pushed to the back of your own mind. You'll have no control of your body, thoughts, or anything. Do you understand?" He explained. I nodded my confirmation and he gave a weak, tired smile. "Good luck then." He waved at a window set into the wall and a small needle and tube snaked its way towards my elbow. It suddenly darted forward, jamming into my arm. I tracked the fluids as they made slow progress to my blood stream.

As the anesthetic took effect, I had only one thing on my mind. He was coming back. Leo's father and the most destructive man to ever walk this Earth was coming the Hell was I doing?

**Leo**

Something's wrong. I can just feel it. A quick look around showed no one shared my feeling.

Terra looked excited, probably because I had ceased my staring contest with the ground. Ember was riding Bell, Scar was talking to Aditi, Raina looked like she wasn't paying attention to anything, but she's blind, and Monique... is gone?

I searched harder for the freaky scientist, but he had vanished. I finally sent out a mental pulse, as my eyes had failed me. I nearly screamed when I found the bastard almost instantly. He was happily perched atop my shoulders, guitar in hand, playing a happy tune. Taking a deep breath, I resolved not to throw him into a tree. When I looked up, I met the discs of wood Monique calls eyes. As I stared at him, a grin spread across his face. He jumped down and walked to Terra.

"Told you I'd snap him out of it." He said proudly, "Now I want my payment." Terra sighed and nodded. I didn't have time to be confused before Monique scuttled over and stuck a needle in my arm. I quickly realized this was Monique's 'payment,' and left him to his work.

Maybe that was it. Nothing was wrong, Monique was just on my head. Maybe not, but I can't prove anything yet.

**?**

Rage, that was the first thing I felt as consciousness returned, that and total darkness… It was strange because I could have never felt more at peace. I had seen Hell, and, to be honest, it wasn't that bad. The intense anger I felt was almost distracting, like I was tapped into others emotions. It truly made sense, I told the company to salvage my brain when I died, but I had assumed they would build a body for me, not put me into a living host. Oh well, I wonder who it is.

As I began to focus on the unfamiliar emotions, I began to see more about them. The rage was directed at this hosts brother. Interesting, this is a half-breed. A gengar, very nice. I could see his past, every memory he had was my own. I took a moment to marvel at my companies own genetic engineering genius, but I was soon drawn to something else.

The creature was speaking. Marcus, that was his name, but he was being addressed as Five, short for 02235. Very interesting, he is an experiment of ours.

"Why hasn't he awakened yet?" Marcus was saying. As I gained more control I saw what he saw. He was speaking to a scientist, one I recognized well. Bill, one of our more trusted.

"His mental frequency will take time to align with your own, then he will be able to communicate with, and through you." Bill said. Now this was interesting. I wonder how I could communicate with this creature. Well, might as well try.

"_Marcus,"_ I thought, trying to project it, _"Marcus, can you hear me? Marcus, I am your master."_ I felt our body stiffen with shock.

"_Who is this?"_ I heard him think. Very good.

"_You know exactly who this is. Continue to play dumb and I'll turn your brain to mush. Tell Bill. Tell __him his master is back."_I thought. I felt our head nod and watched as he turned to Bill.

"He's awake, he just spoke with me." Marcus said. Bill gave a small smile, barely turning the edges of his lips.

"Good, now, maintain your identity, or he may just take control of your body." Bill said with a hint of sarcasm. Ah, so I can take control. Very nice.

I quickly pressed against Marcus' conscious, applying mental pressure, and trying to push him down. Once he was pushed into the subconscious layers of his mind, it would be as if he was asleep, except he would never wake up.

I'll admit, he put up quite the fight, but I have been training my mind for years, he never truly had a chance. When subdued I began sorting out the different parts of his mind that allowed for control. I had to dig into his mind to find the familiar instincts of motor function and speech, but once found, the body would be almost like home. I was happy to find the mental storage of attacks along with movement. Oh yes, this would be fun.

When I had control I looked up and smiled at Bill, who returned the gesture, and spoke, "Thank you, Bill, for that little tip off. I might still be an after thought were it not for you." I smiled again, feeling it stretch beyond what should have been normal. I liked the feeling and let it stretch farther yet. Bill lost his smile for a moment, but still looked pleased.

"Yes, I was worried he might actually win, with the way he was seizing like that. I'm glad to see you prevailed. Would like to give your new body a test run?" He gestured to an open door that revealed the training grounds. Never letting my grin slip, I loosed a Night Shade attack at his head. He dropped to the ground, but for little reason, the attack went high, not even singeing his hair. I sighed and nodded.

"Yes, it appears I need a bit of practice." I walked out into the sun, leaving the pathetic scientist cringing on the floor. I heard Bill muttering behind me, from his place on the floor.

"Yep, Del's back alright." I turned my face to the sky, feeling the heat, and laughed. I laughed because I knew what everyone else didn't. I would control them all.

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Go check out my special mentions, if you can honestly say they were no good, I'll have my next chapter out by 6 o' clock, my time, or in two and a half hours. They are special, and for some of them I made promises to bring them reviewers, mostly cause they deserve it. Go do that and I'll have chapter 31 out soon. Thanks for reading, review mine and those other stories! OR ELSE!


	31. Adventures in Solid City

Galalithial is back! Fanfics delayed me from posting by putting a suspension on my account, but it's over now! Thank you FrostDeman, Relaji, shiny eevee4, Czar Lawrence III, TheBrick, iR4WR, Dragonfang20, Yakolev, and Infinity WEAPON for reviewing. I got art drawn by Relaji! I'll put a link to her deviant account on my profile, so you can go check them out.

Special Mentions: Lucariofan has some awsome stories written. They're all a little bit crazy, and most are more than a little retarded, but they're good done the less. Even as I write this I realize that I forgot to leave review for them, so all need to leave reviews in my place! Nothing else besides last weeks.

LONGEST CHAPTER I HAVE EVER WRITTEN! Enjoy, on with the fic!

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**Del**

Destroying targets was exhilarating. This creature knew so many attacks, it was gloriously destructive. Psychic, night shade, confuse ray, shadow ball, thunderpunch, hyper beam! The sudden burst of energy before an attack flies off to the target down range, hitting and exploding in a spray of beautiful fire is practically orgasmic. I must admit, the practice was arousing me slightly.

"Sir," I turned to find one of my old advisers, bodyguards, and trusted friends. There are very few of those. "Now that you're back, we need to catch you up on all that you've missed." Grinning, I walked to the big charizard half-breed, clasping his forearm in a sign of friendship.

"You big, scaly bastard. Where you been, Zenga?" Zenga shrugged.

"Here and there, but mostly here, cleaning up after you died." He sounded almost angry, like his mind was stuck on something and he didn't like it.

"And what became of my son? Where is Leo?" Zenga growled and turned away. So, he was angry at Leo. "Well? What of Leo?" Zenga continued his growling, not even turning to me for several minutes. When he finally spoke, his voice was strained with concealed rage.

"He escaped, destroyed the lab, freed several experiments, and killed you. Now he's out there somewhere, evading our attempts at recapture with little effort. He somehow even turned one of our agents against us. She's with him now, traitor bitch." The snarl never left his face, actually getting stronger as he continued.I smiled through it all, rather impressed with how my creation was growing.

"Very good, Leo," I said under my breath, "Now, Zenga, what was it you came for?" Zenga straightened slightly, looking more official.

"Sir, in your absence, Silph has continued all projects, and in addition we have made leaps and bounds in the production of several new... items." He gave a small smirk at the end. I laughed at his tone, knowing full well he wasn't as uptight as he was making himself seem.

"Well let's get on with it, I don't have all day."

Zenga led me through an endless number of halls, ignoring everyone he passed, shouldering them aside like the nothings they were. We soon arrived at a door leading to a room I remember well. The Genetic Engineering Lab, Leo's birthplace.

I was assaulted by a bright, blue light as the doors slid open. My eyes adjusted quickly and I recognized the glow of the production fluid used to hold the creations. Cables and wires snaked across the tiled floor, randomly finding homes in the large machinery. In the center of the large room was a large glass column, filled with the liquid that was the source of the unearthly light. Suspended in the center of the tube was a humanoid shape, curled into the fetal position. I noted the large ears and tail floating free from the body.

"Species?" I quietly demanded. Zenga pressed a few keys on a large computer and began to read off the screen.

"Persian. Female, estimated to be around twenty-three years of age. She's being given Protein, Carbos, and several other vitamins to make her more sexually appealing. I would assume She's being grown as an assassin." He snorted, "Or a sex slave to be sold to the highest bidding rich pervert. Anything else, sir?" Zenga said, looking up from the monitor to stare at me. Ignoring him, I paced around the container, examining the creature being grown. She was indeed attractive, very well rounded. I marveled at the construction, impressed that she was so perfect.

"How is she without defects?" I asked Zenga quickly. He walked to my side and nodded, also staring into the tank holding the persian.

"When Leo destroyed part of the lab, he took hundreds of experiments with it, and hundreds more in test tubes. The few experiments that survived, as you know, defective in some way. Over sized body parts, smaller brains, missing limbs altogether, it was horrible. Leo was the first successful experiment, and we all know why that is." He looked at me, and I simply nodded to recognize him. "With less growing containers and more rooms, we spread them out, one container to a room, rather than the cluster you had originally designed. With the same number of computers and nutrients working on a single subject, they grew incredibly well. We haven't had a single failure since." He finished, sighing after his lengthy speech. I looked over the persian again, then walked past her tank to the door beyond.

It opened to show me a similar scene to the one at my back. The only difference was the pokemon floating in the tank, in this case a large nidoking half-breed. This one looked nearly complete, having grown to its full size. The muscle under its thick armor plates flexed, causing a ripple in the liquid the creature floated in. I turned back to Zenga, satisfied.

"What about the breeding program? How are we with natural half-breeds?" As I said this Zenga grinned. To most it would have been frightening, but to me it was encouraging. Zenga rarely got excited; when he did, it was big.

"Follow me, sir." He led me down another maze of hallways. Following him, I realized I had forgotten how to traverse our massive complex without getting lost. I wouldn't be able to leave without assistance, but that's what Zenga's for, isn't it?

At the end of our journey we found a pair of large double doors. Zenga paused before opening them.

"Sir, don't be shocked by what you see. We've grown quite a bit while you were away." I nodded and he pushed open the doors.

When I walked in, I was surprised at first, but shock gave way to giddy excitement. Extended in front of me was another hallway, but it just seemed to keep going, no end in sight. The walls were made of large sheets of glass. As I walked down the hall, I peered into the rooms they showed, and I couldn't help but laugh at what I saw.

In every room, hundreds of pokemon were being raped. It was glorious. They were all female, being continuously raped by human males of our I watched, the workers would occasionally switch with someone else, once they had finished with their current victim. Occasionally, I saw a scientist walk into a room with a group of guards. The scientist would point at a pokemon and she would be dragged away, saved from her torment. Each one of the glass-cased rooms held a different species, perhaps a hundred or so of the type. Every pokemon you could imagine, even some you would think were impossible. In several of the rooms there was an isolated section, walled off from the rest of the compound. Its walls, unfortunately, weren't glass and I couldn't see what was inside. Once I saw a man leaving one of these rooms holding a large studio camera. It sparked my curiosity, but other emotions took hold first. I couldn't contain the hysteric giggling that the sight invoked in me. It was just so wonderful!

"What are the separate rooms for?" I asked when curiosity finally took hold. Zenga smirked, looking very self-satisfied.

"That was my own idea," He said confidently, "They're studios. We film some of our more willing pokemon and sell the videos. We've made millions." Hysteric giggling seized me again, but I was soon distracted by another scientist carrying away a pokemon, dragging her from her human partner, who looked rather sad to see her go, until he found another ass to pound, that is.

"Where do the scientists take the pokemon?" I asked Zenga between laughs. He gave me a look, but said nothing about my condition.

"They take the ones that have become pregnant and hold them until their children are born, then they're brought back here." I nearly collapsed in mirth at just how perfect that sounded.

"To be completely honest, I never expected this. I expected pokemon breeding, and adding of the human genes, but this is far better. Humans can get pokemon pregnant?" Zenga merely nodded. "This is just delicious. I mean, I know you're natural, but I thought it was a fluke, an accident, an aligning of the stars, if you will. This is far better.

"What about human females mating with male pokemon?" I asked, overcome with how excited I had become. Zenga thought for a moment, then sighed and told me what he knew.

"We tried several times, but the children always came out human, and they took too long to incubate. Those children work for us now. They're a bit stronger than average, but other than that they're normal humans. There was one though..." I looked at him, interested when he suddenly trailed off, failing to reveal what I would have undoubtedly found very interesting.

"Yes?"

"We have one, but he's more human, and like Leo, feels he's being mistreated and has attempted escape." He began walking at a fast clip. When I stepped to follow him, my foot failed to contact the floor, yet I trailed behind him nonetheless. Looking down, I found myself floating several inches off the ground, hovering after the charizard. I barked a laugh, I had been excited enough to float. Zenga gave me a look but kept walking.

"He was an accident, actually," He said, "A female professor had entered a steelix's area to administer a defensive boosting agent. The steelix was held down, but they're powerful beasts. It broke free and attacked the scientist. But, instead of tearing her to shreds..." He trailed off, his eyes glazing over with memory.

"It raped her!" I laughed, genuinely finding the whole situation hilarious. Zenga shuddered and said nothing else. We walked to the end of the immensely long hallway and made a right, passing by yet more glass rooms. At each new species my grin grew, growing beyond wide, characteristic of my currently gengar heritage. Once we passed the rape rooms Zenga turned left, walking down another hallway lined with windows looking down into concrete rooms set below the floor we stood on. I stared through each expectantly, hoping to see more of the carnage I loved so much. I was disappointed, but satisfied in a completely different way.

"These are the prisoner's cells," Zenga informed me as we walked past the white concrete rooms, splashed red with the blood of unfortunates, unfortunate that they did something to cross us. "We keep the worst here, or some that just need to have some answers pried from them." He didn't look into the rooms as I did, walking past in cold indifference. I tried to mimic him, but I was constantly dragged back to peering into the glass like a child in front of a candy story.

Zenga led me to the end of the hall of cells, stopping in front of the next to last one on our right. This time I was disappointed. The room was completely empty, save for a single creature. He wasn't being tortured, he wasn't dead, he was just... there. Watching the glass like it was a television. He was massive, towering at least twelve feet high, as big around as a tree. I immediately liked him, however, only for his anatomy. From the waist down was his biggest attribute.

A long, hard looking... tail! A steelix tail, from what I could tell. It was coiled underneath him like a spring, giving him a throne to watch the window from. His stomach was human, but his skin looked to have a metallic sheen to it. His chest was covered in a mass of steel shaped like plate body, extending out at least a foot. It extended up his shoulders, covering his neck and lower jaw. A spike extended the back of his neck, possibly from the steel on his chest, and jutted out through a long, silver braid of hair. His eyes were a silvery gray, penetrating and powerful. I felt as if he was watching me. Maybe he was. His arms and face had the same metallic skin as his stomach. He was beautiful to me.

"You said he's natural born, Zenga, what is his name?" I looked at the big lizard. Without taking his eyes off the hybrid, Zenga spoke.

"Tanic Hargin, son of Professor Hargin." I nodded. I had known Hargin while I was still alive, but I don't remember her having a child.

"When did this happen, Zenga? Hargin wasn't even pregnant when I died. How did Tanic get so big in that time?" I asked. It just didn't make sense. Zenga sighed and looked away.

"You know Professor Marge Hargin. We are looking at her brother." I gasped. That would mean that Tanic had been kept secret from the company for years.

"How is that possible?" I turned to face Zenga fully, but he angled away from me.

"Tanic was born forty years ago. The late Anna Hargin gave birth to Tanic in secret, before we even started researching half-breeds and morphs. Being a well known scientist, she had many friends. When her son was born half-onix, he was big. He was three feet long and weighed nearly fifty pounds. She immediately saw that if she let the company know he existed, he would be taken from her. Maternal instinct must've kicked in and she did what she had to do. She heavily bribed the leader of our First Call guard, she asked him to take the small child and train him. He accepted and he put Tanic through the basic training for other guard pokemon."

"When Tanic evolved, accidentally exposed to a metallic element, the guard began elemental training him to be defensive power-house. He can take any special attack and not feel a thing, even water, fire, and dragon barely hurt him." Zenga looked down on Tanic almost proudly, but I ignored it.

"If his mother did this under the rug, how do you know?" He turned to me with a sadistic grin.

"When I discovered Tanic, I tortured the details out of her. Her cell's behind you." He gestured with his head across the hall. When I turned to look, I had to laugh yet again.

The walls were completely painted red, not a single patch of white remained. Here and there, streaks in the paint lead to bits of flesh and organs were they had trailed down the walls and had come to rest on the floor. A single cleaning man was fighting a losing battle against the red tide. Next to his cleaning cart I saw a pile of vomit, making me laugh harder.

"Who knew you could paint a room like that with one human?" Zenga surprised me when he suddenly spoke next to me. I laughed at his statement and shook my head.

"I've never known you to be so crazy, Zenga. Where the Hell did this come from?" He shot me a glare, but quickly cooled it.

"You know how I have an anger problem," He said quietly, and I nodded, "She spitted on my new boots." I laughed harder yet, unable to believe the reason. It was true, Zenga was easily angered, but this was ridiculous. "When I slapped her, she spit up blood, it landed on my shoes too. Then I kicked her in the stomach. She puked on the shoes, and that was it. I snapped." I could no longer restrain myself, not that I was before, but I collapsed on the floor in gut tearing laughter. I truly couldn't understand why I was laughing so much, but it was pretty funny. His shoes?

"Sir, when you're done, we'll get back to why we came?" I forced myself to breath, clasping down on the laughter, but as I stood, I couldn't hold back an occasional giggle. I walked back to Tanic's window and looked down again.

"Hehe, is that why he glares at you like that?" Zenga merely nodded. As I watched Tanic, the steel half-breed didn't budge."Why is he escaping, or trying, at least?"

"He didn't really try until I discovered him. But it really got bad when I killed his mom," Zenga took a deep breath, "I went into his cell to try and shake him up a bit, but the moment I said his mother was dead, he went berserk, attacking everything in sight. He would have escaped then were it not for our precautions."

"What 'precautions?'" I asked. Zenga pointed at the floor of Tanic's cell.

"Notice how he hasn't moved? There is an electromagnet in the floor. He can't get up from that sitting position." I doubled over laughing again. "Are you alright, Del? You've been doing that a lot." Zenga asked, almost sounding concerned. I just kept laughing. I raised my head when I was recovered enough to speak.

"The things we have here are just so wonderful." I looked down into the cell. I was immediately locked with those silver-gray eyes. After a few minutes I had a thought. "I want to talk to him." Zenga nodded, as if he had been expecting it. He pressed a button to the side of the window and a section of wall repressed and slid to the side, revealing a staircase down into the cell.

Not wasting any time, I ran down the stairs and opened the door to the cell. Ignoring Tanic at first, I faced the window and waved at Zenga, giving him a thumbs up. I turned to the metal monster, who was staring at me. I walked over and jumped up onto one of his coils, getting myself comfortable in my 'seat.'

"Is this a joke?" When Tanic spoke I nearly jumped off him and right out the door. His voice wasn't intimidating, not even deep, but it was so immensely loud, especially in the small concrete room. It sounded like he was speaking through a megaphone. "What is this? You're sending in a delusional half-breed to keep me company? Well, if this is your idea of a joke..." He raised a hand at me. I saw the energy building in his palm, but I ignored it. When the flash cannon fired, I casually raised a palm and stopped it with psychic. I condensed the energy into a tight ball, and with a flick of my wrist, hurled it at Tanic. He didn't even flinch as he was struck full in the face.

"Tanic, Tanic, Tanic," I said scathingly, "You don't even know who I am. Zenga, release the magnet." Both Tanic and Zenga were shocked, but Zenga did as he was told, and Tanic just stared at me.

"Fine, who are you?" He asked with his exceedingly loud voice. I grinned.

"Oh, you should know," When the magnet released he charged at me. I stopped him with psychic and threw him aside. He wasn't hurt, but he was angry.

"You little asshole, you think you can hurt me?" A hyper beam charged at his mouth. He let it loose quickly. I didn't even move, allowing the normal-type attack to pass harmlessly through my ghost body. I grinned wider.

"You really don't know who I am? I'm offended." Tanic tried to circle around me, but he couldn't move very far in the limited space. I saw a dragon pulse charging in his left hand, and a dark pulse in the other.

"I don't care who you are!" He yelled, hurting my ears horribly. He released his pulse attack, a clear wave of purple and black surged toward me. Calmly, I charged my fists with electricity. Punching out, I met the attack head on. A large explosion arose from the meeting of power. Smoke filled the cell, obscuring everyone's view. I heard Tanic sliding around, his tail chinking with every twist of its links.

"Would it help if I told you my name?" I called into the smoke. My response was his tail flying out of the smoke at me. "Gotcha." I caught the tail, allowing it to push me back. I stopped against the wall, but held a firm grip. I walked my way up the massive tail. I reached just where it hooked up to meet his body, but because of the smoke I couldn't see him, and he couldn't see me, and due to the crystalline skin on his tail, he probably couldn't feel me.

With a roar, I lifted the massive body, throwing it right back down. The concussive slam cleared the smoke in a ring. Tanic was on his back and winded. I calmly walked up to his head and stared down at him.

"I'm Del, and I'm your master." His eyes widened for a moment before I entered his mind, digging through his thoughts and memories to find what I wanted. I quickly erased his mother, as well as most of his childhood, despite his screams of protest. In their place I emphasized his years of training in service to my cause. I implanted myself, adding a heavy amount of loyalty to my image. I wanted Tanic to see me as a god, as _his _god. When I was finished, I stared down into the angry eyes of Tanic. "Tanic, are you all right?"

"I'm pissed off," He bellowed, "But I can't remember what I was pissed at! It has something to do with you, and him!" He pointed at Zenga. I looked up and gave Zenga another thumbs up.

"That's cause we ate your pudding, sorry." Tanic looked at me like I was crazy. Maybe I was. "Listen, I was actually here to promote you." His eyes lit up in sudden joy.

"Anything, Master Del, it would be an honor." His tone became respectful, and I had to grin yet again.

"How would you like to be a member of my personal guard?" His eyes lit up again, but were immediately clouded in confusion.

"Then, why am I on the ground, in a holding cell... that's destroyed?" He asked looking around. I looked around too and sighed.

"I must have hit you on the head pretty hard there, sorry." I said, giving him an apologetic pat, "I was testing you, and I didn't want to destroy the training grounds. The good news is you passed." He wore a grin under the metal mask that extended up from his chest.

"When do I start?" I smiled at his enthusiasm.

"Right now, let's go."

**Leo**

Terra's description of solid city wasn't quite accurate. She said it was built around an iron works. The truth is, it _was_ the iron works.

The town gradually descended, homes being built on the shelves formed during strip mining. Ramps and treadmills weaved their way up from the mines, emptying their loadsof iron in smiths near the top. From there, the smiths had treadmills emptying larger loads of iron bars into trucks. Despite its gruff, dirty appearance, the whole assembly was well thought out and even had an artistic feel to it. Metal staircases descended the shelves, allowing easy access into the heart of the city. From our vantage point, at the top of the first step, we could see the town square, which even from this distance looked huge. At each corner of the metal square that formed the area, I could see stairs descending into what I assumed were the mines. In the very center was a massive rectangular building, corners brushing those stairways. On top of the roof was the gym symbol, formed of polished iron, of course.

As we made our way into the city, rooting out the pokemon center, we passed plenty of people, all dirty from the nature of their city, but none ever looked us in the eyes. I saw small children stare at me from the corner of my eye, but they cast a glance elsewhere when I turned to them.

Halfway down, our progress was halted by a group of heavy set miners, their profession showing in their build and cleanliness. One, shorter than the rest, but definitely stronger, stepped forward. The top of his miner's helmet barely reached my chin, but he poked an accusing finger in my chest.

"What do the likes of you want here?" His voice grated, like he had to cough badly but refused to do so. Taking the lead, Terra stepped forward, pushing the stout man's finger aside and standing in front of me protectively.

"_I'__m_ here for a gym battle with Waseem. If you would be so kind, get out of my way." She roughly pushed the man, who I now realized wasn't so short but was a step below us. Because of Terra's height advantage, the man was sent sprawling into his friends. By time he recovered, he was steaming, almost literally.

"Why you bitch, no one messes with us miners!" He took a step and launched himself at Terra. His hand was curled into a meaty fist. Now, anyone who knows me even remotely well would know I wasn't going to let this happen. I lifted Terra, pulling her out of harms way and passing her back to XiD, where she would be safe. Miner boy quickly adjusted, satisfied punching me in the jaw rather than Terra. I didn't want a fight, especially not on such uneven ground where he would have the advantage. In compromise I shoved his fist away, throwing the big man off-balance, and grabbed him by the throat. By now a rather large crowd had begun to form. This man had made me angry, and as I stared back into the curious eyes a plan began to form, one that would successfully humiliate him and make me feel a hell of a lot better.

"Ladies, and gentlemen," I bowed to the crowd, still holding the miner by the throat, and forcing him to bow as well. "Today, I will be teaching a classic, movie style choke hold. Now, this isn't a particularly easy choke, though it's common. You have to maintain a steady grip while constantly applying pressure to the wind pipe. With someone as big as I am fighting, a good grip isn't easy. There are several different techniques to make this choke work the most effectively. I'll explain two." The crowd began to clap, as if they believed this was a street performance of some kind.

"The first, and most famous, is to lift the target, allowing their own weight to strangle them." I lifted the man a foot off the ground, letting the crowd hear his strangled words before setting him back on his feet and letting him catch his breath. "This generally requires lots of strength. While it's true I'm ridiculously strong, I seriously doubt I could hold a possible four hundred pound man at arms length by one hand, at least not for as long as I wanted." Some people laughed, others clapped some more. I had to grin at the strangely positive reaction I was getting.

"The second is far more practical. Use a wall." I spun my victim on his toes, pressing my target's back against a nearby building. Several people clapped again. "Simply push the back of your strangling victim against a wall, or any surface really, and lean on them, allowing _your _weight to do the job. You see this a lot in movies, mostly because most people aren't able to do the far more impressive lift. There are major disadvantages to this though, like how exposed you are from behind if your target has friends, like mine does." Several people oohed and ahhed, looking genuinely interested.

"The difference for me though, is that I have friends of my own." When I looked over my shoulder I saw Raina holding back the brute's friends with threats of fire. The crowd erupted into small cheers, excited by the display of power. I turned back when the guy started clawing at my hand. I relaxed my grip enough for the whelp to breath, I wanted him to hear what I was about to say.

"Listen to me, _bitch_," I whispered, watching surprise light in his eyes, "Now, first I want you to apologize, look at the pretty lady over there and apologize for attacking her." At first he was locked up tight, but a little pressure and a slam against the wall really turns the key.

"I... I'm sorry, miss," He glanced at me and I nodded to continue, "I'm sorry I tried to attack you, it was wrong of me and it'll never happen again." I nodded my approval.

"Now, I want you to promise me you'll never hurt another girl again. You'll be courteous and polite, or I'll find, and I'll make you repeat this promise in your blood."The man nodded and I slammed his head again, "Say it." I hissed, savoring the terror in the man's eyes.

"I-I will nev-never hurt a-another girl again, I promise." I smiled, bright and happy to show I was satisfied. I released his throat, letting him take several stuttering gasps. I turned to his friends, replacing my mask of anger.

"You'll all keep that promise, or else. I won't tell what else, because I believe that would be too much of a comfort. I want the suspense to eat at you, like maggots in a rotting corpse. Maybe in _your_ rotting corpse. Now, if you'll excuse us..." I turned and bowed to the crowd. "Thank you for watching my little demonstration, please have a great day!" As they left in small groups I walked straight at the group of heavy miners, watching them scatter like rattata.

When our whole group was back together, no one was smiling, even Monique had a look like he had been disturbed by horrible sights. It was disturbing me slightly. Terra looked back at the miners. The one I had talked to was crouched on the ground, holding his knees to his chest, with his friends gathered around.

"Just like them," Terra said slowly, "We're scared, Leo. You have random fits of rage that don't suit you. It's startling." I simply stared, looking around the group for conformation. Some nodded, some just looked away.

"Random fits? He tried to attack you, how is that random?" I asked, surprised at this sudden turn.

"And what about the man in Sapling? You cut his damned balls off!" Raina accused.

"He deserved it, we both know that." I growled. Monique looked excited.

"You cut someone's balls off? Do tell." He held up his clipboard, ready to take notes. I snarled and shoved it back in his face. I turned on my heel and started down the stairs.

"Fuck this, I'll meet you at the gym in a few hours. I need to blow off steam." I didn't look back, just kept walking. I didn't want them to follow me, so I ran up the side of one of the buildings, disappearing over its edge and running across the roofs until I was comfortable with the distance I had covered. I first noticed I was much closer to the square, and the streets were busy with people entering shops and just going places. Before dropping to the street below I decided to change. I made myself different than usual, not wanting to be recognized, trying to resemble a random miner of the city. When I entered the crowd, I was swept away by the flowing river of bodies. Rather than fight it, I let the surge carry me through the streets, passing me by the major portions of the city.

As I followed the school like a magikarp, I realized what I truly wanted. I was actually surprised I hadn't thought of it earlier, but it would have made some of these encounters a lot easier. Swimming through the river, I eventually found safety in a side alley, leading into darkness. Perfect.

I followed the maze, briefly reminded of my chase after Raina. I knew what I was searching for, but I didn't know exactly where to look. I could probably find out from one of the many shops I had passed, but that was no fun. Where was the danger? No, I needed a nice, shady bar full of drunken idiots picking a fight.

I never knew that I was gonna get my wish mere minutes after I had the thought. I came to an intersection of alleys forming a T. At the top was a door with a faded sign, and at the bottom was the busy street. A single man broke from the surge of people and calmly walked his way down the alley towards the door. I calmly stopped before he past me.

"Excuse me, what is this place?" I asked politely. He made a strange grunting noise and spit in the dirt at my feet.

"It's a bar. Sinner's Lair, that's what most folks call it." He shuffled past me, opening the door and allowing warm, welcoming light to spill into the dark alley. Following the light, came the loud voices of happy drinkers, laughing, cheering, and some even arguing. Exactly what I was looking for. Without further contemplation, I entered the light's comforting embrace.

It was what I had expected. One long bar lined with bar stools covered one wall of the large room. The rest of the space was occupied by a haphazard arrangement of tables and chairs. None of the tables matched, as if the owner said "screw it" and just brought in whatever he could find. It was entirely possible. I wove my way through the patrons, trying my best not to attract attention as I made my way to the bar. Sitting on one of the hard stools, I gestured for the bartender, a surprisingly young and beautiful girl, maybe eighteen. She gestured, signifying she would be with me soon and I settled in to wait, deciding what my poison would be.

I've never been a drinker, but I'm no stranger to alcohol either. On many missions I had partaken in my share of gin, rum, whiskey, and many other exotic types of liquor. But today I would keep it simple. The confident girl finally made her way to me, serving orders as she went.

"What can I get fer' ya today, sir?" Her warm smile, brought out my own.

"Straight Jack Daniels, nothing in it." She nodded and bustled off to get my drink, while somehow pouring for every other thirsty hand reaching for their order. It took her a minute, but she soon found her way back to me, having slowed the tide of drinkers momentarily.

"Here ya are, can I getcha anythin' else?" I couldn't resist returning her smile and nodding. I quickly downed my drink and set in on the table.

"This has been bothering me since I walked in," I said casually, "How is it you can be so confident, so safe in a room full of drunk and drinking men? You must have problems at some point." She gave me a more secretive smile, accompanied by a sly wink.

"Only once, and the fellas learned better after that." She lifted her apron to show me a small pistol, stuck under the waistband of her skirt. I smiled, as this was what I wanted to find, though I did expect a male bartender, not this sweet little girl. I leaned on the bar, giving her a charming smile.

"Where could I get one of those fancy things anyway? I'm sure you'll understand, I just need a little protection, y'know?" She flashed a knowing smile, saying she did. Pulling a piece of paper from beneath the counter, she slapped it on the surface.

"Got a pen?" Smiling, I quickly procreated one in my pocket and gave it to her. She scribbled something down and turned it around for me to see. "Go to this address and ask the shop clerk for the special. If she gives you any trouble, tell her Sandy sent'ya, OK?" I nodded and got up to leave but paused.

"How much do I owe you for the drink?" I asked her with a small smirk, prepared to create the exact change. She gave me another wink.

"It's on the house, Sugar. On one condition." I leaned in, showing her I was interested. "You come back and see me sometime, it ain't often I find a man I don't have to pretend to like." I gave her a cheeky grin and nodded.

"Promise." With that I left, out the door and back on to the busy street. I didn't know the addresses in this city, but I'm pretty sure someone did.

With a little luck, and a lot of questions, I managed to find the small, dilapidated shop. The rotting sign that hung over the street read 'Mickey's Antiquities.' Catchy. I walked into the dim shop, a bell ringing as the door opened and closed. Cabinets dominated the small space, towering from floor to ceiling, filled with everything between pottery and stuffed animals. Behind the tiny counter at the back was a door with peeling paint.

As I stared at it, a small, happy old woman walked out, getting behind the counter and preparing for business. She gave me a shy smile, but otherwise left me to my own thoughts. I paced around the shop a bit, marveling at the strange artifacts. Soon enough, I found myself in front of the counter, examining a shelf of yet more objects hanging above the old woman's head. I swept my gaze across the shelf, trailing it down another cabinet, and finally bringing it to rest on the small shopkeeper. She smiled again.

"I assume your Mickey?" Her head bobbed happily, "Well a friend sent me here. I'm looking for the special." Her eyes met mine, holding them for a second, judging me I suppose. She sighed and nodded again.

"Well, follow me." Her voice was quiet and raspy with age, yet somehow happy. I followed her back through the paint-peeled door and into a storage room in the back. It was larger than the actual shop, but had even less space due to a large number of wooden crates. "What kind of 'special' are you looking for, honey?" I thought about it for a moment.

"A pair of small, manageable pistols, but high grade. I also want a holster for them, preferably shoulder." She bobbed her head again and waddled her way to one of the crates near the front. Gently lifting the cover she placed it aside and gestured for me to take a look.

"I got holsters for all of them." I gasped as I laid eyes on the armory the woman had in the single crate. There must have been over forty different pistols, all of which had a matching pair. "What do you fancy? Revolvers? Semi-auto? Machine? Glocks, maybe?" I scanned each pair, looking for the one that jumped out at me.

Picking guns is an art form in and of itself. You want something comfortable for you, appealing, maybe stylish; and at the same time powerful, efficient, and deadly. You can feel when a gun is calling out to you, you just know it's the right one. Of course I could have just created the perfect weapon for me, but there's a certain thrill in finding the one for you, buying it with your money, and savoring the whole experience.

None of the guns in the crate were speaking to me. They all just seemed wrong somehow. I found out what it was when I asked the woman if she had more.

"Nah, that's all Silph sent me in the last month." That was it, Silph. I guess I could just sense their taint. My eyes began to wander, skimming over the rest of the crates, my disappointment growing with each passing second. I was about to ask Mickey if she knew of any other vendors when I saw them, mounted above the door frame, where I would have almost missed them.

"What are those?" I walked under the plaque that held the beautiful weapons to get a better look at them. They were big, for pistols at least. They appeared to be five hundred caliber Smith and Wesson Magnums, but modified to be even better. Now if you don't know what a five hundred Smith and Wesson Magnum is, look it up, and then build off what I'm about to tell you.

The first I thing I noticed was the cylinder, what held the bullets, was extended to revolve up and around the base of the barrel, setting the sights within that circle. I estimated it could hold fifteen rounds, in each gun, rather than the standard five. Next thing I noticed was the barrel itself. It was blood red, clashing with the chrome cylinder, yet matching the jet black grip. The sights were dazzling gold, reflecting light almost distractingly. It's gaudy, yeah, but I like gaudy.

As my eyes wandered they fell upon a gold plate near the bottom of the plaque. I could see engraving in it, but the way the light reflected off the polished metal made it difficult to read.

"Log Dognip... Luge Digger... Lucky Nigger? I give up, what's this say?" I asked Mickey, pointing at the gold plate.

"_Lhug Dagnir_, it means _Dragon's Bane_. Those were my husbands, forged from the metals of these very mines," Mickey said walking up beside me, "He used those when he used to own the mines. He used'm to keep the workers in line. Also, back then it wasn't nearly as safe as it is now. This city actually got attacked frequently before it became a sprawling trade metropolis. My husband was the peace keeper. Those guns haven't been fired since he died twenty-two years ago. I don't think I could bear to part with them." I sighed, understanding the gun's connection with the woman, but they were calling to me.

"Is there any way you might reconsider?" I asked, never removing my eyes from the gorgeous weapons. She gave me a smile, a deceptive, planning smile.

"Prove you can use them, and you can have them. Those guns are insanely powerful, not just anybody can use them effectively." She laughed a little, "If you can hit that target on the back wall, I'll give you the gear and guns for free." I looked back, not seeing the target she spoke of at first. When I saw it I nearly shouted. The target was tiny, not much bigger than a quarter. At thirty feet, the length of the room, I might as well have been trying to shoot flies. But I _really_ wanted those guns. I nodded to Mickey, telling her I would do it. She gestured for me to take one of the guns down, as she couldn't reach them herself. I reached for the one on the left, and when I held it in my hand I could feel something pressing into my palm. I looked and found letters written in raised silver. I asked Mickey what it said when I gave her it she loaded a single bullet. "Says _Gadan_, means _Life_. You've got one chance, sonny. If you don't hit it, you'll never touch these guns again." I nodded.

Magnum in hand, I walked to a small line on the floor, marking where I was to shoot from. Before I even aimed, I held up the gun, feeling the weight and balance of the barrel against the stock. It was perfect. The sights were straight, they would lead a bullet where I pointed. The hammer pulled back smoothly, locking with a satisfying click. I raised the gun slowly, steadily aligning the sights on the tiny point. Not wanting to fail such an important task, I tapped into my psychic abilities. I saw the world from two perspectives, from my eyes, and from what my mind told me would happen. When I focused, I found I could see exactly where the bullet would go if I pulled the trigger at that moment. I steadied myself and set everything straight. I saw the bullet hitting the point and a deep calm resonated through me. I took a deep breath, slowly exhaling and pulled the trigger.

The gun nearly exploded. The force of the shot shook me, but I held my ground. The sudden, intense muzzle flare left spots in my vision. Slowly, I straightened from my partial slouch. I walked down range, pulling the target from the wall. When I returned, I looked through the hole, dead center in its surface.

"I get the guns then?" I asked Mickey. She was silent for a moment, and then she doubled over in a wheezing laugh.

"Boy," she gasped, "I would have given you the guns if you'da missed." I gave her a look, asking if that whole test was just a joke. She only laughed harder. "You're the first person I've ever seen stay standing after firing that weapon. Take both of um, the holster, the gloves, and even a bunch of ammo if you'd like." I laughed with her. I didn't realize these guns were _that_ powerful, but I was happy they were mine.

Mickey went into a side room and retrieved the rest of the gear and several boxes of ammo. When I pulled the other gun down from its place I found more raised silver. Before I could ask, Mickey told me what it meant.

"That one says _Gurth_ and it means _Death_." I looked down and nodded. _Life_ and _Death_, with these weapons I was in complete control of that boundary.

When I tried to holster the weapons in there places, I quickly discovered size was an issue. Because of the massive chamber, and the plain size of the damn things, they stuck out through my jacket by several inches. Mickey laughed as I tried to hide them.

"Here, let me help you." She pulled one of the guns out of its holster. Pulling the release pin she flicked the gun to the left. With a metallic snap, the chamber straightened into a long, straight clip. She slid the clip out and showed me the two pieces. "Now you can carry them easier, and don't worry about having to put them in, the holsters are designed to make it easy. I examined the holster, trying to see what she meant.

The gun's holster was deep, obviously, but it was also made of thick leather, at least an inch thick, and cut into the holster was a slot that looked like it would hold the clip snugly. I put them in their respective places, and was happy to see that they didn't show nearly as much.

"Now, draw 'em." Mickey instructed me. I did as she told and was nearly dying with excitement when the clips loaded themselves. "As you draw, a magnet in the gun pulls the clip into its place, and the momentum of your draw swings it into it's circle formation." I nodded, understanding the physics.

"But, wouldn't the magnet effect firing?" I asked, to which Mickey shook her head.

"Not these magnets. They were designed by my husband, they're called half-magnets. Most magnets have a North and South pole, right?" I nodded, "These have only one pole, so they only attract metal from one direction." I sighed and clapped Mickey on the shoulder gently.

"That's genius, your husband was a brilliant man."

Well armed, the guns in their shoulder holsters concealed under my jacket, I left the shop, content. I adjusted the gloves Mickey gave me. I noticed I had a large, purple and green bruise forming in the palm of my hand. She said it was from the kick of the gun, and the gloves, which were apparently made with steel fibers, would prevent that. Happy, I made my way back to the Sinner's Lair, intending to keep my promise and thank Sandy for her help.

When I opened the door, I was greeted by a flying chair. Classic sign of a bar fight. I let the chair fly past and entered the brawl. Mayhem was everywhere, and not a single person wasn't involved, save Sandy, who was crouched safely behind the bar. Unable to resist knocking a few heads, I grabbed one man wielding a pool stick as he tried to chase another man with a beer mug. With the flick of my wrist, I sent him face first onto a table, knocking him out cold. I grabbed a bottle off of a table and smashed it over another mans head, walking past his crumpling form, headed for the bar.

Several unconscious drunks and a heap load of property damage later, I was behind the bar, crouched next to Sandy. She smiled at me, violent light dancing in her eyes.

"Hey, Sugar, I'm glad to see you again." I nodded. I peaked over the bar and ducked quick as a chair leg sailed over, crashing against the wall.

"What happened?" I asked Sandy, not daring to look again. She smirked and gave a shake of her head.

"A drunk idiot stumbled in here and started trouble. Most everybody left when furniture started to fly. You can't tell by lookin' at it, but there are only about fifteen dumbasses up there." I smiled and counted off the ones I took out on my way in.

"I knocked out six, so there are still nine more. I betcha a drink I can take them all out in thirty seconds." I said mischievously.

Sandy grinned, "You're on, and if I win, you show me the new hardware you got from Mickey." I nodded, sealing the deal. With a deep breath I jumped over the bar and into the fray.

Thirty seconds later I was sipping scotch with an incredulous bartender, passing the time with idle chatter. The bar was all but destroyed. Not a single table was intact, and every chair had been thrown at least once, if not more. The fighters were sprawled randomly about the room, left in uncomfortable, half-sitting positions, drool sliding from the corners of their sneering mouths. The bar was safe. A few bottles of liquor were broken, but beyond that it looked pretty much the same.

"I still can't believe you used that scrawny guy to beat the fat one. That must have been the funniest thing I've seen in a long time." Sandy chuckled. I joined, taking a small sip of the scotch.

"Well, I said I'd keep you company, and it's kinda hard to do that with fists flying around your head." We shared another laugh followed by a comfortable silence. I noticed Sandy staring at me, but I did my best to ignore it. Eventually, though, it got more than a little distracting. "What?" I asked simply, challenging her searching gaze.

"Nothin'," she sighed, "I was just figurin' that a handsome man like you must have a girl. Kinda disappoints me, I've been lonely for a long time." Her eyes were pleading, but I wasn't buying it.

"Yeah, I gotta a girl, best thing to ever happen to me. I don't know where I'd be if it weren't for her." Sandy's expression dragged, sagging into a dismal depression. "Oh, come one Sandy. You're a smart, pretty, and resourceful girl. I wouldn't be surprised if a man came busting through that door to sweep you off your feet." She gave me a small smile to show her appreciation. I looked at the door, wondering how true my statement was. Sandy was, after all, everything I said and then some.

It was right as I turned back to my spirits that someone kicked the door open.

"Sandy? You OK in here? I heard there was a fight." A big man stepped in, except not just miner big, but really, really big. He had to turn sideways and duck to get through the door. He was a mass of muscle, towering above me. He was wearing a tight shirt, showing off a scary depth to his abs. His pecs were sticking out almost threateningly. I thought they might suddenly lurch out and grab me, dragging me into their firm hold. The thought made me shudder.

"I'm fine, Norton, this fine gentleman protected me and cleared the bar of troublemakers." Sandy gestured towards me, then to the rest of the room. Norton gazed around the room, nodding with approval before looking back at me. I stood up and offered my hand in greeting.

"Leo, and I'm guessing your Norton Rugby, the gym leader of this city." Norton let out a bark of laughter and nodded, shaking my hand vigorously. When he stopped, he turned away to inspect the rest of the damage. I pointed at him and made gestures to Sandy, signifying that he was her knight in shining armor, even if he was late. She just smiled and shook her head, explaining in gestures that he was just a friend. I did my best to give her an 'I don't believe you look.' Norton turned back to us then.

"You must be a pretty strong man, Leo. I bet you a thousand dollars you can't beat me in a fist fight." He looked very self-confident. Behind me, Sandy poked me in the back a few times to get my attention.

"That's why he's just a friend; he's too full of himself." She whispered. I nodded my agreement, but I still had some time to kill before I had to meet everyone else.

"Fine, I accept. Where we gonna do this?" He grinned and walked to the door. He paused, halfway out the door.

"My gym, I expect you can find it." I gave him a nod and he disappeared. I turned back to my scotch, finishing the last few drops before slamming the glass down with a satisfied sigh. Sandy was looking at me funny.

"What?" She just shook her head.

"Norton is strong, really strong. All that muscle isn't just for show. Even with how well you fight, I don't think you can beat him. I don't think you can even lose without breaking something." I just waved off her concern.

"When I beat him, I'll buy him a round with his money." I laughed as I walked out into the sunlight. The day was beginning to wind down. The main street wasn't nearly as crowded as the sun began to sink below the horizon. I easily made my way down to the square.

The building was far more massive up close. I couldn't imagine what the functionality of such a huge gym was. I wasn't surprised in the least to find my whole party in the lobby. They all immediately stared at me, and I expected them to say something, but then I remembered I was still disguised. I politely nodded to them as I walked past.

"Hey," I was frozen cold by Terra's sudden voice. Worried I had been found out, I turned around slowly. Terra didn't look angry, just frustrated. "Are you the guy Norton came running in here chatting about? The one he's gonna fight?" I nodded. "Well hurry up so I can have my gym battle." I politely nodded again, glad to still be able to fight Norton. When I walked in, Norton was standing in the center of a big, square sand pit, dressed in only a pair of shorts.

He laughed when I walked into the center.

"I thought you weren't going to show. You ready now, or do you want to warm up a bit." He was bouncing on his toes in anticipation. By the way he was standing, I could tell he had some experience fighting. This wasn't going to be easy.

"I'm ready now, bring it on." He laughed again and began to circle me, bouncing on his toes and keeping his arms up in guard. I didn't move, waiting for him to attack first so I could counter attack. It was probably the only way I could beat him without sustaining a serious injury.

When he bounced behind me, he attacked, jumping in and throwing a right jab. I crouched down, going under his punch, and kicked back, hitting him square in the stomach. He let out a little exhale, but was otherwise fine. He kept bouncing around, going counter clockwise around me. When he was to my right, he stepped in and swung a right hook. I ducked under and brought a savage uppercut to his jaw. His head got knocked back, but again he was otherwise unharmed.

This continued for several minutes, him circling and randomly attacking, me dodging and counter-attacking. The game grew old for me quickly, and when he next tried to punch me I grabbed his arm and threw him over my shoulder. I held on and the second he touched ground I gave him a powerful shock, enough to paralyze him for a minute. As he lay on the ground, half-paralyzed lungs fighting for breath, he still managed to laugh.

"Sorry, Norton, I know you were expecting a little bit more, but you got trainers waiting out there." He wheezed something and raised an arm. I picked him up off the ground and stood him up. His breath came back to him in a whoosh, and he used it to start laughing again.

"Very good, Leo, You're one Hell of a fighter, I'll give you that. I'll go get your thousand dollars." He chuckled, turning away. I stopped him and shook my head.

"I don't need it, just give it to the trainer who comes in here next. Agreed?" Norton started laughing again and just nodded, slapping me on the back when I turned to leave.

Luckily for me, there was a hallway between the gym and the lobby, so I was able to use the space to change back into my normal form, with a new jacket to conceal my new hand cannons. Everyone gasped as I walked into the lobby. Maybe they were expecting someone else, maybe they just thought I'd come in through the front door, whatever the case, they were surprised.

"Leo?" Terra exclaimed, "How long were you in there?" I just smiled.

"Awhile, you guys are late, and you missed the fight of the century between Norton and this other guy named Leo!" I tried to sound genuinely excited, but they all looked more than a little suspicious. "Well, are we gonna go win this badge, or not?" I turned and walked into the gym, followed closely by Terra and the rest.

**Terra**

I knew Leo was up to something. He had an over-confident look about him. Though I have to admit, he definitely looks more like his old-self.

The gym was large, but that was kind of obvious by the size of the building it was in. Norton was on the opposite side of a large sand pit that was the battlefield. The man was humongous, to say the least. A mountain of muscle.

"Are you the challenger?" I stepped forward and raised my hand.

"I am, my name's Terra and I challenge you to a gym battle." Norton laughed, loud and hard.

"Well then, let's begin. Three on three, no items, and the challenger may substitute pokemon, agreed?" I nodded, "Then you choose first." I nodded again and thought about what he had. Steel-types.

"Ember!" I called, "You're up!" She danced onto the field, looking pretty happy. Norton laughed and threw a pokeball in the air.

"I choose you, Matrix!" A magnemite appeared in a flash, releasing its strange, metallic call. I wasted no time.

"Ember, quick attack around it, and shoot ember!" I followed a similar strategy to when I fought that slowpoke a while back, but I had the type advantage this time. Ember dashed away, leaving a small trail of dust in her wake. As she got close, she began shooting the small flares at Matrix.

"Matrix, thundershock!" Norton shouted. The magnemite shot out streams of electricity in a perfect sphere, successfully stopping most of the ember attack from reaching, but enough embers reached to still do it was hit, Matrix lost it's aura of thunder and became vulnerable.

"Now, focus punch Ember." Leo gave me a look.

"When did Ember learn focus punch?" He asked as Ember began charging the powerful attack. I smirked.

"Today, after you ran off." Ember dashed forward, launching her body at didn't have a chance once Ember was airborne. She hit full on, knocking him to the ground. "Now, don't let it get up, ember!" Ember complied, covering Matrix in an inferno. Then we got a little surprise.

"Matrix, flash cannon!" From within Ember's bonfire, an intense light grew. Before Ember could react, she was hit with a powerful beam of light from the fire's center. Ember was hit hard, but still able to fight. Matrix, on the other hand, had fired the attack too late to save itself. Norton laughed again and returned Matrix to his pokeball. "Very good, Miss Terra. Go, Brenda!" He threw another pokeball high in the air. When it burst, the light formed into a small shieldon.

"You know," I told Norton, "For a big man, you sure got a lot of small pokemon." He just laughed his big, boisterous laugh, and I gotta admit, it was kind of contagious. Stifling my giggles I called out to Ember. "Run straight at it using ember!" Ember dashed forward, charging the shield pokemon. The embers fired directly in its face did next to nothing.

"Brenda, iron head." When Ember got close Brenda's head began to glow.

"No, Ember jump, but keep firing ember!" She barely made it, jumping just as Brenda began charging, allowing her to flip over and shoot embers at Brenda's exposed back.

"Brenda, flash cannon!" Oh no, Ember couldn't dodge like that again.

"Ember, just keep it up!" And she did, firing her attack into the approaching beam of light. When I could see again, Ember was out cold. I quickly ran out to the field and scooped her up in my arms. From what I could see, she was just knocked out. "Good job, Ember. Alright, go, Bell!" I called, tossing Bell's pokeball onto the field. She burst out ringing, happy to see some action.

"Bell, take down over it, then circle around." Bell did exactly as I imagined, shooting past Brenda quickly. Then she turned faster than Brenda could, and hit her square in the back. "Good job, Bell, keep it up!" Brenda would occasionally shoot out flash cannons, or use headbutt, but she wasn't able to keep up with Bell's speed, and soon she was out cold, following Norton's first pokemon.

"Well, this just worked out perfectly." He tossed another ball onto the field after returning Brenda to hers. "Come on, Serenity!" The ball released the pokemon in a flash of light, revealing another beldum wearing a strange necklace. I didn't like this, when two beldum got in contact, they evolved. I didn't want Bell to evolve, at least not yet.

"Bell, return!" I called holding up the pokeball, but before the beam could reclaim Bell Norton interrupted me.

"What are you doing? This is setting up to be an epic fight!" I just glared at him.

"I don't want Bell to evolve, and our beldum will do just that the moment they make contact." Norton merely shook his head.

"See that necklace Serenity has? It's called an Everstone, it stops pokemon from evolving. I work in the iron mine where there are lots of steel-types, including other beldum. I take precautions; neither of our pokemon will evolve accidentally. Happy?" I nodded, admitting I was.

"Fine, let's do this. Bell, take down!" She charged in, hitting Serenity head on.

"Serenity, flash cannon!" God damn his flash cannons!

"Bell, dodge, then hit Serenity from above." Bell took off, flying straight up. Serenity tried to follow, continuing to attack with flash cannon, but Bell was fast. Seconds after the light faded, Bell dropped, using gravity to her advantage as she drilled Serenity into the sand. But Serenity recovered and took off using take down, getting out from under Bell. "Follow her, hit her when you can!" They played cat and mouse for a long time, Bell getting clean hits occasionally, but for the most part it was becoming a stalemate fast. Then we got our break.

"Serenity, turn and flash cannon." Serenity turned and began charging.

"Bell, take down straight through it, and spin, gathering the attacks energy around yourself." It was a long shot, but what other choice did I really have? I just had to sit and hope. The brilliant beam fired. I saw Bell go in spinning, then I was blinded by the light. It cleared soon enough for me to see Bell drilling Serenity into the ground, her body surrounded in a vortex of brilliant energy. Serenity was out.

Norton began laughing as he returned Serenity. "Very good, that was an impressive use of my own attack against me. Here, you've earned the Dense Badge, this TM containing flash cannon, and a thousand dollars!" Norton laughed as he walked across the field to me. Resting on his hand was the badge, shaped like an iron bar, a silver disk, and a big wad of cash.

"What?" I yelled, glad, but startled, "Why do I get a thousand dollars?" I heard Leo chuckle, but ignored it, I was too deafened by Norton's booming laugh.

"That guy I fought before you, Leo, that was his prize money and he said to give it to the next trainer who beats me." He laughed again, placing the reward in my hands and closing them around it.

"See," I heard Leo say, "I told you there was a guy named Leo here."

"Shut up, Leo, you're still in trouble." I growled as I walked out of the gym. To the next city!

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Here ya go, I'm doing homework and have nothing to say beyond, REVIEW!


	32. Beat Down

First, I must apologize. It has been a month and two days without an update, and that is just disgusting. Unfortunately, with the start of school it may happen again. Curse you advanced classes! Now, thank you TheBrick, Yakolev, shiny eevee4, Czar Lawrence III, iR4WR, Bisylizzie, Relaji, glaceongirl, and Maddenwars for reviewing.

This chapter is dreadfully short, but understandable if you understand my circumstances. Down here in Florida we are under a Hurricane Warning, and we have had killer thunderstorms lately. One such storm knocked out my power and deleted the finished five thousand word chapter. This is a two thousand word summary, basically. It has all the same good stuffs, but it is cut down on detail. On with the fic!

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**Leo**

I stared up at the sun, mesmerized. It was the first time in months that I'd seen it unhindered. I stretched my arms wide, enjoying the warmth on my arms. I silently thanked the decision to wear a tank top today. The decision had really been to avoid wringing out several gallons of water from my clothes, but this was nice too.

Everyone else paused to enjoy the sunshine too. It was only a small gap in the clouds, but warmth quickly widened the breach. Several bird pokemon began to call with jubilation at sight. Ember was dancing crazily, never letting both feet touch the ground. She looked so happy she was practically glowing.

"Holy shit, Ember you're glowing!" I shouted. Everyone turned to share in my awe. Ember had stopped for a moment, but a silly grin was plastered across her face. The white light grew to a blinding level, smothering even the sunlight in its harsh glow.

When we all could see again, we weren't surprised to find Ember dancing even more, though now she was at least two times bigger. The new monferno wasted no time in pulling Terra into a giddy dance. Monique pulled out his guitar and began playing a happy tune. We all laughed and clapped along as Ember and Terra danced in a tight circle. The moment was a nice break from the usual chaos we'd endured. I've said it before, we aren't that lucky.

A sudden explosion shook the ground, knocking several of us down and shaking up the rest. I spun around quickly, attempting to see past the thick stand of trees, but having no luck. With a sigh of defeat, I sprinted towards a nearby tree.

"Stay here, I'll be right back!" I shouted over my shoulder as I scaled the tree.

"Arceus damn it, Leo! Quit doing this! You're going to get yourself killed!" I heard Terra shout before it was muffled by the rustle of leaves. I flew up the trunk, landing gently on a high branch and scanning the horizon. A large smoke cloud was just beginning to break the tree line to the south, back into the rain. I could see it falling in heavy sheets, the oppressing falling water we have lived with in our travels. With an exasperated sigh, I pushed off the branch, launching into the air.

Mid leap, I changed, shifting into a powerful pidgeot, ruler of the skies. Carried by helpful gales, I reached the smoke cloud in a few minutes, but already I was drenched from the regional downpour. Using my superior eyes, I searched the smoke for the source. I could clearly see the outline of some kind of building, but beyond that, no real definition could be discerned.

I was circling for a fifth time, about to turn back, when movement caught my attention. Out of the haze, five figures walked almost lazily into a clearing in front of the building. Immediately suspicious, I dove low, making a tight circle before perching in a nearby tree. I changed back into myself and listened hard, picking up the conversation of the small group not too far off.

"...gonna be real pleased we got you out, eh Jimmy?" Said a man in a black suit. He slapped Jimmy on the shoulder as he spoke. I could tell Jimmy was human, but he was huge, and he was wearing a marowak's skull and wielded a large bone.

"I don't care." He said simply. The other three men, also in black suits and presumably agents, shuffled nervously, while the first just laughed.

"Whatever, let's just get you back to Silph." That name always gets my blood pumping. I dropped from the tree and walked calmly towards the group. All had their backs turned to me except for Jimmy, who watched me walk up with indifference.

"Going somewhere?" I asked coldly. The suits turned around suddenly, startled at my appearance. The first recovered quickly and stepped forward.

"I know you. Leo, you got a hit on your head bigger than Del's ego. And that's saying something. He was acting so great when he gave us this mission, but I bet I could even kill him." If there's anything that can make me angrier than Silph, it's their leader, and my father, Del.

"So, he's back. Fuck." I said quietly to myself. The first agent just sneered and took a step back.

"Trying to scare us, standing there all threatening? Kill him, Jimmy, we'll get paid good for this." Jimmy, who looked even bigger up close, heaved a massive sigh and stepped in front of the others. Next to regular humans, he was a giant. He stood at least two feet above the agents, and he was as wide as two of them together. He had only a simple pair of beige pants for clothes, but his torso was wrapped in filthy bandages. His gnarled brown hair stuck haphazardly out the bottom of the skull he wore as a helmet. The massive bone club he carried was at least half as long as he was tall, maybe four feet. I looked up into his eyes and saw a calm indifference.

"I don't want to kill you, but I won't let Silph have even a small victory." Using agility I ran behind him, formed knives in my hands, and killed the four agents faster than he could have blinked. They fell to the ground clutching their gaping throats. Jimmy turned slowly and faced me full on again. "If you don't surrender and leave, you'll die." I snarled, to which Jimmy only shifted his feet, setting them wider apart, holding his club in both hands.

"Arrogance breeds defeat, Leo." He said calmly, not in a mocking was, but as if it was a simple fact that everyone knew. I snarled and jumped at him. I came down with my foot extended, aiming to land a kick on his than expected, Jimmy whipped up his club and slammed it into my side. I was sent flying across the clearing, smashing into a tree, my only form of brakes. I coughed violently, more than glad my bones were reinforced; it still hurt like a bitch.

I looked up and gasped. Jimmy was right in front of me, club raised high. In desperation, I used agility, barely rolling out of the way as the mass of bone tore through tree and earth where I had been. I stood quickly, ignoring the twinges in my ribs. With a shuddering gasp, I jumped into the air, fighting the pain. High above the ground, I began to build electricity, drawing energy from the thick storm clouds above. With a roar of pain and power, I unleashed a Thunder down on Jimmy, who only stared up at me calmly.

The electricity filled the clearing with light and sent sparks dancing across the rain drops. The resulting explosion left a sizable crater in the earth where Jimmy had stood mere moments before. I landed on my toes, but collapsed to my knees from the pain. I felt along my chest, assuming at least one of my ribs had been cracked.

"Impressive, but it wouldn't have done much." My blood ran cold, chilling my finger tips and numbing the shockas I turned and faced the very whole Jimmy.

"How... That should have killed you!" I managed to gasp between spasms. Jimmy merely shrugged and gestured to the skull with his club.

"These aren't exactly a fashion statement." He explained. "I was raised in the wild by a clan of marowak and cubone. I lived with them until I was sixteen, the customary year when young cubone will go out to claim their own skull and club. What I found was an old golem. He was a fight. When I killed him I took his skull for a trophy, and it is what I wear now. It gives me elemental protection from electricity." He then stroked a hand down the club lovingly. "I took this from a wailord, and that was one Hell of a fight." He sighed and turned back to me. "And compared to the trials I have faced you are next to nothing." He rushed at me, pulling the club back to swing. "For your arrogance you will die!"

I jumped over the first swing, but Jimmy brought the second from under and I had nowhere to go. The strike landed in the center of my back, sending me straight up into the clouds. I had only a second before he was above me. Grabbing my arm and spinning, he threw me straight back to Earth, faster than the lightning I called.

Hitting the ground with the force of a crashing jet plane is a real bitch. The moment I struck a violent ripple went across the earth. The ground actually sunk for a moment, then bounced back like water to hit me again. Again, the mud reverberated, sinking down but not rising. I landed in the center of a large sinkhole, wallowing in my pain for moment. I called out to Jimmy, letting him know I was alive, "You say I'm arrogant," I gasped slightly, trying to stand, "yet you have the nerve to give me a fucking speech when you know I can't fight." Finally on my feet I wobbled uneasily to the edge of my hole.

"It isn't arrogance," Jimmy called back, "to know your opponent. I knew I was safe, that you could do me no harm. You, on the other hand, immediately assume you are the greater. If I hadn't put you in your place, someone stronger would have and probably killed you in the process. Be glad I uphold the virtue of mercy." I snarled, clawing at the lip of the depression.

I crawled out of my small crater and stood shakily. Jimmy was there, standing above me like a disapproving parent. I barely had the strength to swing at him, but even that was to no avail. He grabbed my wrist and pulled me forward. With a grunt, he brought up his knee into my elbow. I screamed as my right arm fell uselessly to my side. Jimmy punched me in the stomach, knocking the wind out me. My tears mingled with the rain running down my cheeks. I looked up to see Jimmy's retreating back.

"Where the fuck do you think you're going?" I shouted, pulling _Death_ from its holster with my left hand. "Don't fucking turn your back on me, Jimmy!" He turned with sudden anger in his eyes. The sudden change brought me to my knees, but I kept the gun leveled.

"Don't ever fucking call me Jimmy. My names is Jormunghur. I'm not ashamed of my name like you are." This shocked me into action.

"What do you know about my name, you fucker?" I stood and stumbled after him, gun still aimed at his back. "What do you know about my name?" I fired three times. Jormunghur turned and swung. I heard a slight clicking sound, then felt burning lead in my gut. He had knocked the bullets back at me. I fell unconscious from the agony. It would be a couple hours before my friends found me, a couple hours to stew in my own thoughts.

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The next one will be sooner, with any luck. Not that I have any, of course. Thanks for reading, fucking reveiw! I could use the motivation...


	33. My Mind, a Wonderfully Aweful Place

Well, I updated within the month, CHEERS! This isn't edited, POUT! I gave a copy to my editor, and then he said something about Michigan and disappeared. Oh well, I replace it when I get the edited one. I have a surprise for all of you, but it has to wait until the end of the chapter.

Thanks to FrostDeman, Dragonfang20, Maddenwars, Infinity WEAPON, TheBrick, Czar Lawrence III, iR4WR, cydain(twice?), and Bisylizzie for reviewing. Your all my favorite people ever! They all also have some pretty cool stories you should go check out! I mean you, random reader!

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Leo**

The land between my thoughts is an interesting one, especially when I'm unconscious and unable to control where I drift.

I began my journey in a cage, in a room, in a place I was vaguely familiar with. Filled with darkness, it was unmistakable. Even the roughly humanoid shape, doubled over on the floor, was immediately recognizable. The poor flareon's fur was several times more filthy then the last time I had seen him, mounds of shit fell of in clumps with matted hair, and the once energetic eyes no longer held a spark, not even of fear.

"Hello." I whispered quietly, nervously, as not to startle him like last time. The muscles on his back tightened suddenly, that old spark suddenly flaring to life, but it died as quickly as it had come. The stood flareon shakily, every movement displaying resigned obedience.

"Who's there?" He called into the shadows. It wasn't a challenge, or an accusation, not even a threat, but a simple question.

"I am." I said quietly, doing my best not to startle him. I was the one in for a shock, however, when he turned around and stared directly at me. I looked down at myself and found my body, which I wasn't expecting to find, but I was translucent. I looked like a cut-out on wax paper that someone was shining a flashlight through.

The flareon watched silently as I did several spins, staring at myself, before he politely interrupted me with a loud cough. I turned back to him and apologized.

"Don't apologize to me," He said with a shake of his head, "I remember you, your voice. After I had chased you off I spent a long time thinking." His stare intensified, seeming to look right through... never mind. "Leo, you said you wanted to help me. How could you possibly..." He turned back around, crouching on the floor with a grunt. I tried to rest my hand on his shoulder, to reassure him, but it simply phased through his body.

"Listen," I sighed, "I can help you. But you have to help me help you." His head turned back towards me, those eyes kindling a tiny flame of hope.

"What do you need?" I smiled, and he returned the gesture.

"Your name and your general area." He nodded and sat back down, though now thinking rather than slumping.

"Well, my names Corrdarow, but you can call me Corey. And I was in Black Wood Forest when they captured me." He stood back up, eyes misty with memory, and I didn't press the issue.

"Black Wood Forest," I thought aloud, "That's right outside Graysnow city, at the base of the volcano?" Corey nodded confirmation. "I will find you, and get you out. I promise, Corey." I smile lit up his gloomy face, and the tears that began running down his face left streaks of clean that shone red among the black filth.

His image blurred then, fading into blackness. I was enveloped in a sense of weightlessness, floating through empty space like nothing. The time seemed to drag in this suspended state. What was mere moments felt like days. In this state of extension my senses lost meaning, and they dulled, one by one, until a different sense began to take over.

At first I did not know anything had changed, but then I saw lights approaching. They were extremely bright, yet I felt no need to shield my eyes as they grew closer. They were all different colors, these lights, each one its own shade and spectrum. One in particular caught my attention. It was different, somehow. There seemed to be a strong blue light, bright even against the others, but within, at the very heart of the blue, was a flash of bright green. It was more intense than even the blue, powerful and demanding attention.

I reached for the green, intoxicated by the lovely color, but as my fingers grew near they faded. The lights dimmed to melt back into blackness, leaving me alone yet again.

I was not left to the abyss nearly as long, nor was I brought out gently. In a sudden rush of senses I found myself in a small office. It was very usual. A desk, scattered with papers, and a few chairs, a bookcase, and two doors. It reminded of those old movies with a detective, and this would be his office. I half expected a man in a trench coat, smoking a cigarette, to kick the door and start ranting about the latest case.

He was no detective, but the door was certainly kicked in. A heavy set half-breed stormed into the office, large red wings flapping in agitation and causing yet more disarray in the cramped space. Orange claws ripped angrily at his tucked, white shirt, pulling it from his black pants and revealing a compact gun holster. The large charizard head swung around as a second half-breed entered the room, this time a gengar, devoid of clothes.

"I don't see why you bother with the useless articles, Zenga. They don't really serve a purpose to us." Zenga, the charizard, growled and turned completely to face his colleague.

"Unlike you, I was once human, and this simple act is the only thing I still have to connect to humanity! I can't even write, do you know that?" He held up one claw. "These _things_ are incapable of working a pencil, or even typing." He craned his neck to look behind him. "This damned tail has been nothing but a hindrance since I woke up, and every time I sneeze I burn someone." As if on cue he sneezed, a small burst of flame shot out his muzzle, setting several papers ablaze. He sighed unhappily, but the gengar merely laughed.

"Don't worry about it so hard, it gets easier, you just have-" He cut himself off suddenly. He had taken a step into the room and was now staring at where I observed the interaction.

"What is it?" Zenga asked, straightening and shooting up.

"We're being watched."

With that I was shot from the scene, rocketed back through the darkness to land roughly upon what felt like sand and gravel. When I opened my eyes it was, except it was also an island, surrounded by red water. It splashed in thick waves on the shore of my stone seat. Nothing else was around, and the red sea faded off into the darkness that was the rest of the universe.

I did not want to be sent adrift in the endless black again, so I resigned myself to wait. It wasn't long before I was rewarded.

"Patience is a virtue, Bellrauthien, but it will not redeem your sins." From the darkness floated a devilish skull. It was eerily familiar, but I couldn't remember from where. The bleached bone shifted shape, from a human skull, lit with flames, to what appeared to be a wailords head, but always with spiraling horns. As it floated ripples appeared in the surface of the otherwise still lake of red. In the ripples I could see reflections of people dieing, or already dead and strewn across pavement in bloody messes. I tore my gaze away to find the skull mere feet from me, hellish coals burning for eyes locked on my form.

"Who are you?" I dared to ask.

"I am HE." It responded. The voice was surprisingly deep, mixed with a monstrous, guttural growl. "I am Lord of all, I control you, them," The head tilted slightly to signify the images in the water. "And everything around you. I am above Arceus, Giratina, Dialga, and Palkia. I created them, you could say they are my sons. I am known as many things in many places." They head began to circle me, creating yet more perverted images in the red water. It made me sick.

"Really," I said, trying not to vomit, "like what?" The head froze, shifting constantly, rapidly. When it spoke it roared, suddenly angry.

"I am HE! I am known as Satan, the Devil, God, Allah, The Savior, The Grim Reaper, Evil, Good, Light, Dark, Gravity, Space, Purity, and Sin. That does not scratch the surface of the names that have been denoted me. I am everything! I am! The name I use is Abyssus Eternus. Hell Eternal. HE. Do you understand, Bellrauthien?" I nodded weakly. "Good. Why are you here?" I was caught off-guard. I hadn't the slightest idea, yet HE acted as if he had no idea and I should no.

"You said something about sins, I suppose I'm here for redemption." His laughter that followed chilled me, shaking my bones and making me feel insignificant. And in truth, I was.

"There is no redemption for you. Look." HE dipped his chin down, which had conveniently morphed to elongate. The tip of bone stuck into the red and suddenly shot up, spreading a wave before me. I shied away, but it froze midair. In the frozen waves I saw the tortured faces of many, and some faces I recognized.

"These are people I've killed." He chuckled, which was still an unnerving sound.

"You are looking into there blood." I gasped, realizing the lethargic red water was so much more. "Every person you killed went into Purgatory, a state of absolute nothingness which I control. When you float through the blackness of space here you find your senses dulled to the point of non-existence. Now imagine that void filled with nothing but endless pain. That is the eternity you have doomed these people. Maybe some deserved it, but nearly all had redemption in there future, and you took that from them. Look." The wave shifted and I was presented with a whole new set of faces, ones I recognized like a bloody knife, so painful.

"My mother... and sisters..."

"You killed them in cold blood. You doomed them to Purgatory." I began to cry. I couldn't help it. I couldn't believe the death toll I had racked up. I was a monster. I deserved not to live any longer. I touched a finger to my cheek, where tears fell unfamiliar. It was then that I began to laugh.

"What is it you laugh at? Surely it is not this?" I laughed and held up my fingers, glistening red where I had touched my tears.

"I haven't cried in so long, it feels like forever, and now when I do it is in blood." I laughed until racking sobs took laughter's place. He released a sigh, a loud, vibrating sound.

"You have a chance at avoiding a fate worse than Purgatory." I looked up hopefully, but then saw the wave of pain again.

"But, I don't deserve it. Not after this. Fuck me." The wave collapsed with another sigh, melting back into the ocean of blood. A single drop lifted, a large, glowing red drop.

"If you look around you, you see the extent of the sea of misery you have caused." HE rumbled, "Now look at the ocean created by the man held in this drop of blood." My sea suddenly expanded rapidly, and at the same time my podium rose. I was well above the blood when I stopped. I couldn't help but gasp.

I knew that from my height I could see at least twenty miles in every direction, but the ocean of blood still extended beyond sight.

"And it keeps going." HE said, floating up beside me, "Do you know who did this? Who could have caused so much suffering?"

I knew who it was. Before HE had even hinted at it I knew. It was so plainly obvious to me, I had hunted the cause so long, and now I see the purpose for my hunt. I had a secondary drive now, a compound of reasons to continue strive for the extinction of this monster. Through gritted teeth I spoke the name of one so hated in my mind it blocked my vision with rage just to here the name.

"Del."

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You know the drill, review and praise me.

Now, the important news that I know everyone will cheer at. The next chapter will be out Sunday! It will be Halloween themed in honor of the season! Now, go review and tell me what you think! Thanks for reading and REVIEW!


	34. Halloween

Gotta make this quick, I'm going Trick or Treating. Thanks everyone who reviewed!(I'll fix this later) This is my Halloween Chapter! Enjoy! On with the fic!

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Leo**

Three days later, and we were an hour out of a city called Mud. Leo, you may be asking, how does a city earn such a horrid name? It is really quite simple. A horrid place deserves a horrid name. Elementary!

First off, the area in which Mud is situated is the closest thing Ooame has to a desert. By that I mean that if it would ever cease raining the mud that gave the city it's name would become sand. In this horrid city are equally horrid people. Angry, thieving, conniving people known as Muds. Creative people, truly. The oppression they live in has given all of them a characteristic slump, hunched back, and ultra pale complexions. They all reminded me of aged vampires. Their houses are built of fired mud-bricks, and although the firing does make them more durable, the incessant rain leaves almost all the buildings in a state of disrepair.

The only structurally sound buildings I could see as we entered were the Pokemon Center and Mart, the League regulated these buildings and had certain construction requirements. As we started towards the Pokemon Center I asked myself yet again why we were stopping here. Terra answered as if she had read my thoughts.

"We need to stop to heal and rest. We all don't have the stamina of pokemon here." She said, making a face unconsciously putting a hand to her stomach. Probably hungry. None of us had really eaten recently.

"Just you and Scar," I said, "And we _have_ offered assistance only to be turned down." Terra merely growled, warning me to shut up. "Whatever, I'm gonna walk around after we stop at the Center." Terra grunted and trudged on, lifting her legs high above the mud with each step.

I was gone the soonest I could leave, marching my way bravely through rain, mud, and overall rude people. I made my way to a small shop which seemed to be mostly intact. I was happy to walk in and find a dry haven. The shop owner looked at me strangely, but not in any abnormal way thanks to my human shape, which has become almost second nature to me. I had entered the small shop in hopes of finding a calendar, for I realized I had no idea what month, let alone day, we were in. What I found in the store, however, took my breath away.

Adorning the walls were hundreds of masks, all filled with color and fear, for they were all made to look terrifying. Hand carved from wood, some showed faces melting right to the ground, and others malicious creatures of death and torment. One section drew my eye more so than the others. These masks were smaller, and not nearly as horrible. Many showed happy faces of pokemon from squirtle to Arceus, and everything in between. There was a pikachu, and it made laugh, imagining meeting someone on the street wearing that mask.

Finally, my curiosity fulfilled, I turned to the owner. He staring at me again, probably exactly how I was staring at him.

"You're not from around here." He said. It was exactly what I was thinking. He met non of the criteria for Muds. He was tan, a golden brown from head to toe, and his hair was a spiky mane of fiery red. His glowed gold, a shade lighter than his skin. He wore a trench coat, appropriate for the weather, but he filled it, standing up straight and tall. There was a confidence about him, a sense of ability. He was not your average Mud, for sure.

"And neither are you. Do you have a calendar?" I said skipping the formalities. He nodded and jammed a thumb behind him. I walked past him and up to the back wall, where among the colorful masks hung a stark white calendar.

First I checked the month, October, my favorite month, the beginning of Winter, and the end of Fall. I scrolled down the X's in the days, looking for the first unmarked day. Then I found it, and I nearly shouted for joy. It was my favorite day of the year today, the only day I could walk free as myself and have no one laugh, be scared, or run from me! I just love Halloween!

My thoughts quickly turned to the sinister side of the holiday. I just had to scare Terra, and how glorious it would be...

**Terra**

Everyone had gone out to do whatever, and I was left in the Pokemon Center alone. I was grateful for the room Nurse Joy had offered us, and equally glad for the silence while everyone was in their pokeballs.

My thoughts turned to the joke Nurse Joy had tried to pull on us, saying the room was haunted, but she later explained it was all in the spirit of the season. Who knew it was Halloween today, my least favorite holiday of them all?

My imagination began to get away from me as images of monsters flashed before my eyes, and I immediately regretted turning the lights off. I sat up, holding my face in my hands, trying to dispel the irrational fear I had.

"Terra..." I heard whispered. I lied back down with a sigh, annoyed at my own inability to control my thoughts.

"Terra... I want you..." I shot up again, certain that wasn't my imagination. I looked around, but nothing was there, no one to be trying to scare me.

"Right here, Terra..." I spun around and stood up, and there, on the bed where I was sitting was a skull. It didn't move, it didn't speak, but that hardly diminished the creepiness. Suddenly the head lifted back, opening the mouth wide. Out of the gaping maw came a billowing white creature, unlike anything I had ever seen.

"Terra... I want you to die..." It rushed at me suddenly cackling evilly as it rushed through my body then the wall. I screamed, running for the door. It was locked.

"There is no escape, my play thing, you are mine now!" I turned slowly to see Leo, standing there. He wasn't smiling, but rage took over.

"You asshole! That wasn't fucking funny!" I stopped screaming when he said nothing. He didn't move, it didn't even look like he was breathing. I walked up to him slowly, reaching out to brush his shirt.

He turned to ash, falling to the floor in a pile. I screamed again, scrambling back to the door. I couldn't pull my eyes away. Two large foot prints formed in the ash, leaving large indents in Leo's body. Then they took a step, and another, and another coming towards me, leaving gray footprints in their wake.

I screamed, the force hurting my throat. The ash was blown away lifted into a tornado building in the center of the room. Spirals of gray built pictures. Of my death.

Then Leo was there again, but moving this time. I didn't yell at him, he looked as scared as I did.

"Terra!" He cried, "Fight him, Terra! Don't let him take you! He already has me!" A swirling red hole appeared in the floor, swallowing Leo and the dust.

He was gone. Everything was quiet, eerily quiet. I shut my eyes and began to cry, for he was gone. My Leo was gone. I couldn't make sense of what he had said. Don't let who take me?

"Me." My eyes shot open, staring into the laughing face of a giant skull. It was massive, filling the room. From its temples spiraled two massive goat horns, brushing the ceiling and leaving long gashes. That was the only constant. The skull shifted shape every few seconds, taking on another form time and time again.

"Who are you?" I screamed over his laughter.

"Me? I am Death!" He roared. The floor opened into the same swirling pool of red. Out came hideous creatures built of tentacles and slime around single eyeballs. They slithered towards me, attempting to grab me with powerful arms. I fought it, but more came.

They dragged me, kicking and screaming to the pit, the ugly skull laughing the whole time. I screamed as I was drawn down, down into Hell and eternal darkness...

Then I woke up, sweating and screaming. Leo was on the floor, laughing and rolling. It didn't take me long to realize what had happened. I quickly grabbed a shoe and threw it.

"Son of a BITCH!"

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Leo is an asshole! Thanks for reading and REVIEW!


	35. Merry Christmas

I'm back everybody! Rejoice! I'm sorry I've been gone so long, but what can I say? Procrastination's a bitch! I've been telling people for a while that this chapter was ready, and, honestly, it was! The only problem lied in my own laziness. I didn't feel compelled to go to my editor and ask him to read it! But, that's all behind us now. Let me just take a second to catch up, Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Hanukkah, and a Very Happy New Year! My New Year's resolution is to get my posting back on track! Enough self-flattery, I've delayed long enough as it is.

Thanks to Infinity WEAPON, Arcane-Boomeus, iR4WR, FrostDeman, Maddenwars, Dragonfang20, cydain, crazybarkz101, and Czar Lawrence III. Again, thank you.

Finally, I really missed saying this, ON WITH THE FIC!

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Leo**

Two months of heavy hiking was beginning to take it's toll. It was made all the worse by the steady shift from ceaseless rain to flurried snow. Waste deep and heavy, the snow would have been impassible had we not been in the company of two strong fire breathers. Irritability was just as strong, however, and everyone was just about at wits end.

"Hell is filled with snow." Terra muttered. I couldn't help but smirk, and I tried to hide it, but Terra was in no humor. I turned the hood of my heavy jacket just as a snowball came flying at my head. No one was in the mood for foolishness, and whatever playful joy could have come from the act was lost in another snow drift.

Monique, ever the irritating optimist, was striding ahead of us, walking high with his far too convenient snowshoes. Sneak was right beside him, walking on top of the snow with no help whatsoever. Damn his ditto weight in relation to size.

The sound of heavy metal guitar, frequently being broken by gusts of wind, was beginning to grind into my patience. Thoughts of murder flashed before me in the white snow, but images of that snow holding revolting images painted in red quickly turned my thoughts.

"Monique..." I growled. He turned, walking backwards. Yes, in snowshoes. "How do you stay warm? Your wearing swim trunks and a pink polo." He looked down at his floral outfit and shrugged.

"Today I wanted to test the human bounds of temperature. Which reminds me." He passed his guitar to Sneak, who quickly picked up the solo Monique had left off on. Putting on a pair of orange sunglasses, Monique flipped out of his snowshoes, again, promptly utilized by the neutral ditto. A second later he was next to me, clipboard in hand. "How are you not warm? You have fur, a pair of batteries for cheeks, and a full snow suit. Interesting..."

"I swear," Raina muttered, "he only gets more strange." Sneak, mimicking his master, spun around in the snowshoes to speak.

"As time goes on he will find less and less things interesting in the group and will, in your eyes, get yet stranger. Just wait until he feels he has learned all he can from you... ah-h-h, that will be a sight." He droned, though I've begun to believe that is the only way he can speak. The most emotion he has ever showed this troupe was one time. Aditi walked around one of our hotel rooms naked, and even then we only got an erection out of him. I'm really just saying that every time he speaks, assume it is in a monotone.

The walking continued, and, as is customary during times of little action, my mind began to wander. Eventually it fell on the weather. The snow made me think of winter, and winter made me think of the month. Since Mud I have been keeping track of the days as best I could, and, if I'm not mistaken, today is Christmas Eve. That thought trailed off to ways to celebrate the holiday, which only brought up bad memories of Christmas' past and my dead family.

Before the tears could begin erupting from buried pain I thought of Terra, my guiding light. I knew exactly what I would get her for Christmas. She would love it so much, hugging me close, and then...

"Leo, why are you blushing?" Ember asked. I jumped and looked down at the spunky fire-ape.

"It's the cold, my body is naturally responding to it by trying to keep me warm. The blush is just blood rushing to my face to keep it from freezing." By now everyone was staring at me and the blush only grew. New tactic. "We're headed to Incline Town, right?" With that, everyone started walking again. I'm a genius.

"Yes," Raina said, hissing fire on the 's', "the first town in the Trinity of Flames." Terra gave her a questioning look, asking to explain. "On Mt. Vapor there are three linked towns. Incline, on the south side heading up to the crater. Far Hini, in the crater itself, and Heleg Yanta on the north slope. We also call Heleg Yanta the 'Ice Bridge' because it is the path into the coldest parts of Ooame." Everyone shared "oh's" of discovery.

I thought a moment and said, "I just can't wait to reach the hot springs." immediately the girls squealed and surrounded me in a pestering circle.

"Hot springs?"

"Where?"

"How hot we talkin'?"

"Do we have to where clothes?"

"Are they gender separated?"

"Do we have to pay?"

"Are we there, yet?"

"Actually," Scar said, distracting the encircling mob long enough for me to creep away, "I think we are here."

The wind was picking up, sending more snow flying and creating a small blizzard. Despite it, we could see lights of windows in the distance, all stacked up and in on the slope of the mountain. The girls gave another grating squeal and took of running, leaving us boys to run in their snowy dust.

As has become custom for me, when we had gotten into town and settled I left on my own. Everyone else said they'd be at the springs if I wanted to join them.

I walked into the snow on a mission. I was aware of several things besides the springs in this town, including a well known breeder. That was where I was headed, after a bar, of course, to gain a little important information.

I found one with a horribly generic "tough" name, 'The Bruised Knuckle'. One man, rivaling the mountain behind in size, walked out, gave me the stink eye, and walked off into the blizzard. I checked my guns in their holsters and walked inside.

The atmosphere was surprisingly warm with people laughing, playing cards and darts, and the quiet drinkers at the bar. Strung along the ceiling were dozens of strings of brightly colored lights. As I looked around I noticed cheery music coming from a small band in the corner, next to a Christmas tree. Light and spirited, was the music, fitting the season.

"Can I take your coat, sir?" A bubbly, feminine voice behind me asked. I turned to find a smiling red-head offering her hand for my coat. I took my coat off, but tossed it expertly onto the coat rack behind her.

"How about a dance instead." I said, grabbing her still extended hand and pulling her out to the clearing in the middle of the building. "Hey boys," I called to the band, "you know anything for the Foxtrot?" The lead guitarist gave me a salute and began talking with his band.

The girl was giving me a concerned look, and said, "But, sir, I don't know the Foxtrot." Noticed, now, she had a slight Irish accent. I gave her a smile.

"Don't worry, just follow along and go where I lead you." The music picked up, fast and fun, and spun the girl across the floor. The whole bar began to clap along to the song, and a few brave souls joined us dancing. We spun tight circles, strode between people, and frequently switched places. By the end of the song the girl was out of breath and the audience was cheering. I quickly lead her off the floor and to an empty table.

"See, dancing's not so hard. What's your name?" I smiled again.

"Tracey, sir, Tracey Lane." She panted, still a little winded. "Thank you, sir, I don't remember the time I had such fun!"

"Well, I'm glad you enjoyed yourself. My name's Leo."

She finally returned smile having caught her breath, "Mr. Leo, sir, would you like anything to drink?"

I shook my head, "No, Tracey, I just wanted a dance, and to know where I could find Helga."

"The crazy lady?" She asked, a little surprised, "She lives on top of a ridge behind the Gym." I raised my eyebrows in my own surprise.

"Since when does Incline have a Gym?" I asked to which she shrugged.

"New kid, Quinton Alvarado. Came in a couple years ago." I raised my eyebrows, giving little more emotion.

"With that, then," I said standing, "I bid you adieux. Perhaps I'll come back, and we can share another." A wink and a smile and I was out the door, trekking uphill towards the now hard to miss Gym. Damn that giant lit up pokeball and its selective invisibility.

I wanted to get to know this Gym Leader, maybe help give Terra an edge, so, naturally, I walked right inside and straight into the Gym, ignoring the annoying receptionist. I adopted a new persona as I approached the young man, throwing punches at a bag, pokemon gathered around. I wanted to throw him a little off-guard.

"Who the hell are you?" Brash asshole in a eastern accent, always a fun one. "I've been to this town thirteen times in the last five years and never has there been a gym." Quinton straightened, relaxing his fighting stance. A gliscor swooped down and handed him a towel as he began to approach me. He was pale and red headed, shirtless, which made sense, with loose, white cargo shorts. He had a pair of headphones, but I didn't hear anything. Off to the side I could see a high collared t-shirt, gray with a wide stripe of blue going directly down the middle. He was lanky, but strong, judging by the way he carried himself.

"Quinton Alverado. This is where they stationed me when I passed the Leader's Test. I took the place of some guy who became a Elite Four after one retired. What's it to you?" His voice flowed with youthful confidence.

"I'm here with a trainer, just wanted to know how bad she'll kick your ass." I sneered, "How do you hold your battles." He narrowed his eyes, glaring at me with measured annoyance.

"First, let me tell you I am no push over. I spent years as a regular trainer, traveling regions most couldn't pronounce the names of. I never challenged a league because I thought it pathetic to disgrace them. You walk in here like you own Ooame, but I don't think you could last five minutes with me." He smirked, feeling confident he had undermined me. I just looked over his should, examining his team. The gliscor was hovering over another three. A tyranitar, a dunsparce, and a manectric. The dunsparce looked to be the best trained, but I wanted to leave a mark.

"Bet I could knock-out your tyranitar." He barked a short laugh.

"Grieves. Let's hit it." The tyranitar released a roar as a sandstorm started to kick up in the room. "Earthquake!" Quinton shouted as he jumped out of the way. Grieves stomped the ground hard, sending a splinter up the tiles at me. I wanted until the last moment before side-stepping the rock spike that erupted where I had stood.

Running in a curve I came at the tyranitar fist raised. "Dark pulse!" I shielded my face as a wave blackness radiated from Grieves' jaws, knocking back into a set of weights. Grunting, I picked up a dumb bell and hurled across the room. My opponent ducked and began running at me, electricity dancing on his fists. "Shockwave!" He slammed his fists down, firing electricity in a growing circle. I stood and took it, absorbing the power for my own. I heard Quinton gasp, but I ignored it.

Running at Grieves I charged a thunder, letting them think it was his electricity. As I punched the tyranitar grabbed my wrist, pulling me into a very judo style throw. If it weren't for my weight, it would have worked. We both collapsed to the ground under my momentum.

"Why don't you speak?" I whispered out of plain curiousity.

"Respect for the battlefield." Came the growled reply.

"Outrage!" In a flash of red Grieves threw me off, immediately shooting another Dark pulse in my face. I was thrown into the ceiling, but I followed through, using gravity to add force I punched him atop the head. Knock-out. Behind me I heard clapping.

"I'm impressed," Quinton said walking up, "we could learn a thing or two from you." I smiled.

"But not right now, I have a meeting with a breeder. Sorry I couldn't stay long."

"What happened to the asshole who was here before the fight?" He asked with a questioning raise to his eyebrow.

"Mutual respect does that to someone." We shared a smile as I walked to the exit. "And, it was a cover."

It was short walk from the Gym to Helga's front door. Her shop was a small, well-kept building of wood. A fire's glow warmed the windows. She was the same as I always remembered when she came to the door. Short, stocky, and smiling. She had a few more gray hairs poking out from under her wool hat, but otherwise she looked.

"Hello, sir. I'm sorry, but I'm closed in this weather." She certainly wasn't crazy, but when I last left her she was spreading tales of the six-foot pikachu. I would have thought her crazy, too.

"Helga, it's me." She gave me a look, a peculiar scrunching of wrinkled face.

"The voice does not match the face." She muttered. With a sigh I changed into my original self. Recognition quickly spread across her face. "Leo, my boy, if I hadn't already seen you, that transformation would have made me believe I AM crazy. How are you my boy?" Helga was the closest thing I had ever had to a grandmother. Every mission I had that would even come near Mt. Steam and I was hear, trading stories and eating chocolate chip cookies.

"I've been well, Helga. Let's go inside." I said, brushing past her into the warm common room.

"Oh, yes, indeed. One could catch a mighty cold out there." I smiled. She was just the perfect picture of loving little old lady.

"I actually came to get something, Helga. I was hoping you had a spare egg." She gave me another look, almost the same as the first, but her lips formed a tight line.

"Now, Leo, you know I gave up breeding long ago, and now I only run a day care! I can't just give away some poor trainer's egg, and swear he never had one! The gall of you, asking me for such a thing." She went on muttering into the kitchen, where I could smell something baking.

"You don't understand, this isn't for Silph." She poked her head out from behind the door, eyebrow raised. "I got away from them. I'm traveling with some trainers now." She gave me a warm smile and popped right back into the kitchen.

"Well, good for you! They were just not good, for you, for me, for anybody." She walked out caring a fruit cake. Now, I know what your thinking, but Helga makes even fruit cake taste delicious. "Tell me about this group of yours."

I laughed and said, "You say that like I own them."

"Well, you should! You always were a natural leader." She cut me a slice and shuffled away to get me a glass of milk. "What about your friends now."

"There really nice." Said through a mouthful of cake, "And I've gotten into a bit of bind, which is why I'm here." Helga came back with the milk, setting on a table in front of me and seating herself in a big armchair.

"What kind of trouble can you, Leo, not handle? Do you think me a daft, old fool?" I laughed, nearly spitting up cake and milk.

"No," I coughed, "there is a girl in the group, one I've really come to like, and" Helga's eyes shot open. She hopped up out of her chair and ran to me, engulfing me in a suffocating hug.

Releasing me she said, "Tell me about her, what's her name, how old is she, is she sleezy, did you sleep with her, did you use protection, does she like, is it official, are you getting married-"

"Helga, Helga, Helga!" I just short of shouted, "Later! The point is, it is now Christmas and I never got her a gift." She took on that tight lipped expression again, now in thinking.

"You know, I did find an egg the other day. Completely unguarded, not a parent in sight." She shuffled to a back room. I heard shuffling and boxes being moved. "I knew it wasn't a trainers pokemon, it didn't have coloring to match any in the day care." Her voice grew louder as she walked back in. She was holding a solid black egg, shiny, with an orange, four-pointed star on one side. "I was going to hatch it myself, find out what it is, but I suppose you can have it." She placed the egg gently in my hands. "Just tell me what it is when it hatches."

After idle chatter, more cake, some hugs and good byes, I was back at the Pokemon Center. I decided it was best to just give the egg to Terra, it was Christmas, after all.

After a slight change in wardrobe, a towel, I made my way to the hot springs conveniently attached to the Center. Ignoring all warning signs and uneasy feelings, I made my way to the women's hot springs. It was luckily empty save Terra and Aditi. I heard them talking about some product clothing as I made my way around the pool to behind Terra.

As sneaky as I could, I swept behind her. Aditi saw me first, but being the good sport she is, quickly excused herself and leaving a puzzled Terra.

"Merry Christmas." I said, making her jump, but holding her down as I put the egg in front of her face. She gasped, then lightly took the egg from me. Terra looked at it for a moment, then turned to look at me. I could see in her eyes a twinkle of joy, but she remained silent. "Don't I get a thank you?" I jokingly asked.

Terra put the egg aside. She looked up with a very different twinkle in her eyes. Next thing I knew I was in a hot spring naked.

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You know the drill! Review! Move, move, move!

I want everyone out there to tell me THEIR New Year's Resolutions, and the best ones, those that warmed my heart and my pants, will get posted all over the Internet.

Thank you for reading, REVIEW!


	36. Reflections

****Yes, I'm back. Sorta. This isn't really a chapter. It is just... a confession. My life has been hard as of late, and as Leo has always been more an extension of who I am, another part of me, more than a character, I decided to use him as an outlet, as well as to let you guys know... I am back.

**Leo**

_I spent days there. In that retched place. In a hole of pain and regret. I left my soul to drown in a lake of misery while I sailed away on a boat of callous lack of feeling. Numbness... has protected me and harmed me all at the same time. I try not to feel, and as such do not feel the knife cut my throat. I dangle at the end of a rope called pain, slung in a noose called regret. It hurts, more than any sane human being can relate to. I'm surprised. Surprised that I've lasted as long as I have. My heart, for your heart is truly where heart resides, that heart which is the embodiment of emotion, more than a physical organ, and that emotional heart has so many holes in it for strings to run through, and depending how they may thread, they can hold you together or rip you apart, and my heart... my heart has been torn, yet sewn so that the the pieces may hang as punching bags for the weary and the without rest. I have become an outlet, both physically and mentally. People may hit me, cut me, torture me, and I will not break. They may scream at me, insult me, scorn me, but I will not cry. I have become a symbol of hope and of destruction. For, it is the callous that may string the minds of the people to do there bidding by being the hope they themselves cannot not muster, by being a light in the dark, but at the same time, grasping tight the rug beneath their feet, ready to smote the light should I deem it correct. Who am I to act this way? I am no god, no all powerful being. I do not have the power, nor the authority, to do what I do, yet I do it anyway. Does that make me a devil? I have been called Lucifer, for people who hold fear in there hearts, that sacred hole for emotion, have no other excuse than themselves, and they do not wish to look upon themselves in such a manner. We are weak, we intelligent creatures of the world. You look upon an animal, so strong, so fast, so much more than we are... and yet we slander them stupid, unthinking, idiotic creatures. They've been around a lot longer. Maybe they just no more than us. I will resign myself to be as an animal, if I can. Perhaps it is only animal that can do no evil._


	37. The Pen, to Master the Sword

I did it. I'm back. I wrote another chapter. Boo ya. Too many people reviewed for me to thank you all individually, but thanks, anyway! Enjoy my return, though it's not quite... epic. Oh well. It explains where the story comes from. Also, I had a revelation, but I'll save that for the post chapter note. On with the FIC!**  
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**Leo**

I suppose I owe an apology. Or, perhaps an explanation. So, I apologize to anyone who is reading this epitaph to the end of an era. I would offer the explanation, but... I was always taught that it is only an explanation before the fault, and afterward it becomes an excuse. I'm not sure what qualifies, but I have an excuse, whether good or not, that is relative.

To this day I regret my laps in attention to this story, biography, history... whatever it has become in your day and age. The events that transcribed in this period of foolishness on my part were harrowing and still send ice cubes down my spine in the middle of the night. The period was painful, and joyous, and horribly confusing for that. I guess I should just explain...

The morning I left Terra in the spring I returned to Helga. I finally gave her the description she desired. I let her know all Terra meant to me, and the list was very long. Helga is still every bit my grandmother, I just wish she were still alive. After spreading my emotions across a Chinese sleeve, Helga demanded she meet Terra. It is hard to say no to some one as you are eating their cookies, so I obliged.

On the walk to retrieve my beloved I ran into Monique and the girl from the bar a night ago. If I remember correctly, Monique was doing an in-depth analysis of her accent and how it effected her syntax. This is "normal" Monique, of course, so the poor girl was pinned against a wall, a waiver shoved in her face with one hand and a dangerous looking, squirmy probe in the other. I would later be told this was Sneak, transformed. After rescuing the unfortunate barmaid, Monique had a sudden blast of clarity, and he began drilling me on where I had slunk off to every night. I feel I tactfully averted the questions, but he persisted in not sleeping, for one, but hounding me relentlessly for the next couple of weeks. Therefore, he and Sneak were present for all Helga's embarrassing scrutinization of Terra, and was thus scrutinized herself.

After receiving general approval from Helga, Terra was in high spirits. She wanted to challenge the gym. Regretfully, I told her I did not want to be battling this time, being as I had already been to the gym and would be recognized. She consented, but that left her with only Ember and Bell. They fought admirably, but Quinton's team was amazing. I was right, looking back in the journal. The dunsparce was Quinton's strongest pokemon, easily overpowering Bell despite her type advantage.

Terra was shattered. It is the folly of all young trainers to find themselves invincible after the first couple gyms are beaten. Terra lolled herself into this self-destructive confidence and was pulled down all the harder for it. With the high horse having a broken leg, it looked we were going to have to take it out and shoot it. That night Terra disappeared. She vanished into a snowstorm, footprints quickly dissolving into inches of powder. The entirety of the group was worried, but we are a patient bunch. But only so patient.

The blizzard persisted for two days after Terra's absence. It was the collective assumption that she had snuck off to do some training in private, but we all harbored our own secret worries. Monique later told me he feared she had run out to die in the storm, saying he had seen signs of early suicidal tendencies. This sparked my immediate concern, but when he started going about how dating me was ten or twelve hazards of its own, and then started about the possible rigors of sex, I started tuning him out.

Raina feared that, although she did go out to train, she had gotten lost in the storm. Scar feared she had been taken. XiD said nothing, understanding one's need for solitude, from time to time. Aditi and I feared the worst. That Del had finally caught up with us and sent someone to hurt me emotionally.

Another two days after the storm ended, the worries grew and had begun being voiced. Another two days and Raina and I went searching. We searched around the town in every increasing circles. After a five-mile sweep we began losing hope. We returned to the Pokemon Center with heads hung low. I admit, there were tears in my eyes. A week passed, and I began secluding myself. I refused to leave my rooms. It got to the point that Helga willingly left her safe home, striding through town under the frightened, curious, and even hostile stares of the townspeople before reaching the hospital to try to pull me from my hovel. Monique even held back with his insistent poking and prodding to leave me at peace.

Two weeks had passed when Terra returned. To say I was overjoyed would be to lie to you. I was ecstatic. I lost control of my transformations, shifting shapes as quickly as I was speaking. Some would think that after seemingly losing your loved one you would be angry with concern, but I was just too happy. She was alive. All that matter to me was that her existence continued.

She didn't return alone. Ember had gotten bigger, now a large monferno. Bell had also grown, a little over two feet long. Then there was a stranger. At Terra's side was a bouncy little wooper, who we were quickly informed was named Wallup. She made mention of him smacking her when they met. He is your classic wooper, hyper to the point of insanity, scatter-brained as anything. Here's an example of a standard sentence of his:

"WOH, look at that big ASS pikachu, and the dude next to him, I mean, he's got a CLIPBOARD!"

More or less.

Terra's egg was still clutched to her chest, but she was excited to tell us she had felt it move.

Then we heard Terra's story. She told us that after her sound defeat, she didn't know how to handle it. She didn't know what to do. Then, it came to her, the obvious. She had to train.

She said the realization struck her suddenly, so she just had to go. Apparently, she had taken a trip up the mountain to the next town, and then back again, all the way up to Far Hini, battling the entire way. She told us that when she had set out, she didn't realize there was a blizzard stirring up, but she wasn't going to stop her. It did, though, forcing her into a cave along a frozen river bank. It was there she found Wallup, hiding out the same as she was. She promised him a warm bed and food, and he gladly tagged along.

While at Far Hini, Terra mentioned meeting the gym leader, an older man named Michael Cox. She said little more than that, though, explaining that it was a passing greeting on the way to the Pokemon Center. She did make note of a brooding teenager nearby, saying he was watching Michael.

Terra went on to describe some of her battles, but none were particularly interesting, mostly just a lot of hit and miss victories. She was proud to say that by the second half of the return trip, she didn't lose a single battle. She felt more ready to face Quinton. All the same, she gave herself a week to rest.

When she did finally face him again she beat him soundly. Two on two, the gliscor got taken down by Bell rather quickly, but then she was put out by the manectrike. Terra threw in Wallup, and it was all over. Wallup's ground attribute made him the perfect weapon against manectrike. It wasn't over quickly, the dog was still quite the fighter, even without her electricity, but Wallup is no slouch either.

We spent that night celebrating. Nothing crazy, just lots of food. And drink. Courtesy of my good friend Tracy. She didn't recognize me, but that's fine. I wear a new face every week, these days. The party extended into the night, long after the other patrons had left. Helga, finding new courage to walk around town, joined us at one point. She left after putting away more alcohol than even Monique could handle. And, Monique could handle a lot, it seems. It may also be worth mentioning that Helga was nearly sober when she left.

The next morning I invited Helga to come with us; she refused, reminding she did run a daycare. And so we left her in peace. We headed up the mountain, our massive group attracting a pretty good amount of attention. We ran into several of the trainers Terra had beat on her way down. At first, some of those she knew ran away; I guess she beat them pretty soundly. This decreased the higher we went, though.

A couple of days up the mountain we ran into Nera and Troy again. They had gotten stronger. Much stronger. I don't know what had changed, but Troy was now completely immune to my electricity, and fighting a rock-type bare handed is a good way to get things broken. Like my hand. And my leg. To be honest, I had lost. I'm not sure I could have won even without being broken. They had gotten that much stronger. I was saved by Raina, pouring hellfire down upon them and escaping with everyone in tow.

I heal quick, but a broken femur still takes at least a week to mend. In that time, trying to procreate myself into anything caused crippling pain. All I could was either hop along with my dignity, or be carried and let myself heal faster. I'm proud, but not stupid. I made Terra put me in the pokeball. During the next week I don't know what happened, but when I was healed and let myself out, we were safely in the Far Hini Pokemon Center. Terra was making plans to assault the gym.

Now is the point where I ask if you remember the flareon half-breed, the one whose mind I had a habit of invading. The one in the cell. Well, as it turns out, that flareon's, Corey, was being kept nearby. Incline, Far Hini, and Heleg Yanta aren't the only towns on the volcano. Gray Snow, where Corey was living, rested on the Eastern plain, where most of the volcano's ash fell. It wasn't any farther down than Incline. And now I was close enough to finally keep my promise.

So I made my promises to return, relented and allowed XiD to come with me, and started on my way.

Moving quickly, XiD flying along, we made the outskirts of the town a little after three days. From there, XiD hung over my shoulder, invisible, as I started asking questions. We discovered that months ago, around the time I first contacted Corey, the townspeople were making regular reports of strange, large pokemon out in the forest. More than one. That worried me. But, they also said, a unit of Silph soldiers had shown up for a few days, then left just quickly, and the reports of large pokemon stopped. So, Silph had Corey, and possibly others.

Later we learned of a lab, halfway up the slope of the volcano, but that it had recently suffered a serious accident. We went anyway. The area was deserted. A series of buildings were aligned in two column fashion, six in each column. Every single building had a gaping hole in it somewhere, and one on the end was nothing but foundation. We assumed it was the Silph facility that Nera and Troy were bragging about when we first met them. There didn't seem to be anything useful.

But Silph is always more than it seems.

In the demolished building we found a staircase leading underground. Probably the reason this particular build was 'removed.' Underneath everything was black, but XiD was right at home. I was planning on just generating my own light, but he warned me I may have need for all my power. So, I trusted him and his eyes. I followed him through the winding passages, jumping when he told me to, and ducking when instructed. He followed my directions, as I told him what we were looking for exactly.

Eventually, we found our way to a lit room deep in the complex. It was the genetics lab. Probably the only thing still drawing power. Scattered around the room were large, floor to ceiling tubes of glowing red liquid. They all seemed to be empty. Until we got to the back of the room.

At the back was another tube, but this one glowed blue, and from a distance it seemed to have a shadow in its center. It did indeed have a shadow. An umbreon half-breed was suspended in the fetile position, knees to chest, arms around the knees. XiD and I released her, but she remained unconscious. I procreated some clothes for her before XiD made to many suggestions, and we started heading back. Carrying the umbreon, I wanted to check one more room. The prison. But, unfortunately, it was as empty as the rest of the building.

The outdoors were not so quiet. When we surfaced, it was to the sound of helicopter blades. I came to the conclusion that they were either here for the half-breed on my back, or XiD and I had triggered some security system in the lab. We started running, but I had to move carefully with the umbreon on my back. Our progress was slow, slower than the soldiers and their helicopter. They were closing in quick, and I only felt that we needed to get the half-breed. It took some convincing, but I got XiD to take the girl from me. While in contact with her, he was able to make her phase through everything with him. He could even make them both invisible. They had just disappeared when the helicopter's spotlight hit me.

It had been a long time since I had seen the reflective super soldiers, but they had been a challenge the first time. I stood steady as they swarmed in from the trees around me. They didn't say anything, they just gathered around, guns raised. I began firing electricity from my body in a vibrating halo, but not a one even flinched. I tried firing a few streams into the crowd, but still they didn't move, they weren't even phased. It took me a moment to notice that they all were connected by thin cables. At first I thought it should be frying them all simultaneously; then I saw several, in the backs, holding on to poles rooted to the ground. The troops were literally grounded. My electricity could do nothing.

I was just about to go in fists first when a rope descended from the helicopter. Immediately following it was a gold suited soldier, one of the commanders. He dropped the last ten feet, and followed with a roll towards me. The movement was quick enough to catch me off-guard as he connected a fist to my jaw. I was pushed back, but I regained my footing and struck back. He was really fucking fast. He dodged every punch, avoided every kick, yet he was still able to connect with his own attacks. I was getting bruised quickly, not seriously hurt, but I was still losing. I decided to opt on the elements, releasing a vicious flamethrower.

I should have known the suits were fire-proof. While I was holding the stream of flame, another grunt snuck up behind me, slamming the butt of his rifle into my skull. As I was falling I saw the gold-suit shake off the flames.

"Give him the tranq before he can move." Was the last thing I heard.

And then I woke up here. I've sat in a cell for what must be going on the second day. There is no door. There are no windows. Everything around me is solid metal. I don't know what type, but it was impervious to all my attempts to tear it down. And so I sit, and wait, and catch up on my journal. I just want people to know the truth. Maybe my scribblings will be read by some people someday, and they will learn from my mistakes. Better pick this up later, though, I think I hear them coming.

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I realized why I stopped writing. I stopped because I had planned out the entire story to the end. Now, that may seem like, well, then why didn't you just write it then? I didn't because I personally felt like I had already written the story, why would I write it again? It felt redundant, and the story was no longer fun for me. So I scrapped my outlines and now I will write by the seat of my pants from now on! So, and I so missed saying this, **REVIEW!**


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